One of my favorite things about this time of year is definitely all of the holiday parties! I’m pretty sure I have one to attend every weekend up until Christmas, yay! I always like to bring a little treat to them, so it’s the perfect excuse to get in the kitchen and experiment with new recipes. On Saturday, my friend Julie and her husband, hosted an open house/holiday party. They recently completed their beautiful kitchen renovations so what better way to show your friends your hard work than by inviting them over for some holiday cheer?!

I had to work Saturday afternoon then went straight to Julie’s house, so I knew I had to make something pretty quickly before I went to work. And it had to be something that traveled well because I was leaving straight from work then driving out to the ‘burbs. I immediately thought I’d make some sort of “snacky” food. Something easy to munch on while chit chatting, something a little sweet and salty. So, I got to looking on the interwebs and found this recipe for Spicy Popcorn Balls from Food and Wine. With a few alterations, I made it my own and I think it was quite a success. I decided to cut back on the spice factor just a bit since I was bringing them to a party and oddly enough, not everyone loves spicy, especially if it’s unexpected.

Popcorn Balls (Makes roughly 36)
Print this Recipe!

• 20 cups of freshly popped popcorn (about 3/4 cups kernels)
• 4 cups Corn Pops
• 1 1/2 cups salted roasted peanuts
• 3 cups sugar
• 1 1/2 cups agave nectar (the original recipe called for light corn syrup but I wanted to use the agave for a touch of natural sweetness)
• 1 stick unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon chipotle chile powder (add more or less depending on how much of a kick you want them to pack!)

I absolutely love popping fresh popcorn. It’s obviously a bit more work and cleanup than just tossing a bag in the microwave but there’s nothing like making your own. I normally use a very large pot and start off by pouring about a couple/few tablespoons of vegetable oil in. A little trick I learned, once you’ve poured the oil in the pot, add three kernels. When one or more of them pops, you’ll know the oil is heated properly and you can add the rest of the kernels in.

Put lid on the pot to make sure the kernels don’t pop out of control! Holding the lid down on the pot, continuously shake the pot to make sure none of the kernels stick or burn. Continue shaking the pot until you no longer hear any more kernels popping.

Remove from heat and let sit for another minute or so since there might be a few straggler kernels waiting to pop!

Once the popcorn is done popping, add the Corn Pops and peanuts.

And mix well.

In a large saucepan, combine the sugar, agave nectar (or corn syrup), butter, water, and vanilla.

Cook over medium high heat, making sure to stir, until the syrup reaches 295 degrees on a candy thermometer, about 15 minutes. Stir in the sea salt and chipotle powder.

Now, carefully pour the hot syrup over the popcorn mixture. Using a wooden spoon, toss to coat the syrup over the mix.

Immediately spread the popcorn glazed mixture onto a lightly oiled baking sheet. Now, this is where you can use your best judgement. You can either wear lightly oiled rubber gloves to form the shapes of the popcorn balls, or you can use your bare hands. For some reason, I don’t own a pair of rubber gloves, so I did this part with my bare hands and it is HOT. So be careful. You can use an ice cream scoop to help form the shape (to get 36 popcorn balls, each should be about 2″) then lightly press in the palms of your hands, making sure not to pack it too tightly because you don’t want any of the popcorn/cereal/peanuts to break.

By incorporating a throwback cereal (Corn Pops!) and more traditional snack foods (popcorn and peanuts) these popcorn balls touched on all aspects of a great party food. Sweet, sticky, crunchy, buttery, salty, and fun! Plus, it was kind of funny to watch people eat them and be like, “Ooooo, what are theeeese?!” then see them get all excited when I said they had Corn Pops in them. Which, by the way, I don’t think I’ve ever purchased in my adult life. We used to eat pretty normal cereals growing up and when my mom would buy the variety packs we’d all fight over who would get the “fun” cereals

Between making Momofuku’s Cornflake Crunch and these, I think I’m on a little cereal kick. I kind of want to experiment with it all now!

What’s your favorite holiday snack to bring to a party?

[Chels]

But the other night as I was whipping up some savory brie and fig cupcakes, I got a brilliant idea for a new business. A savory cupcake shop! Now, that’s something Boston could totally use, right?

Except once you call something a cupcake, people immediately want it to be sweet. Which is why I’m sure my idea could never work. I’d have to call the cupcakes muffins instead. Which I almost considered using in the title of this post. But then I changed my mind. Because nobody ever said cupcakes had to be sweet. And I love a nice savory cupcake from time to time. If this bothers you, then please, by all means call these cupcakes muffins. But brie and fig muffins? It’s just not as fun. Suck it up and eat a savory cupcake. Please.

Brie and Fig Cupcakes (makes 6):
Adapted from Objectivo: Cupcake Perfecto

• 3/4 C flour
• 1.5 t baking powder
• 2 T parsley, finely chopped
• 2 eggs
• 2 T olive oil
• 1/4 C dried figs, finely diced
• 1/4 C brie, finely chopped
• 1/3 C buttermilk
• Salt and pepper

(Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees)

Finely chop the parsley.

And the figs!

And the brie, too.

Make sure you save a 6 small pieces of brie and figs for the cupcake toppings! Or the “frosting” if you will.

Now, mix together the flour, baking powder, parsley, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl.

In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs. Then add the oil and milk, while continuing to beat. the mixture.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir with a spatula until well-blended. But don’t over-mix!

Add in the brie and figs, as well.

Divide evenly among 6 muffin cups.

And pop in the oven at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes.

I absolutely love photos of what I like to call “the aftermath.”

The best part about these “cupcakes”? You don’t need to frost them (I am NOT a good cupcake froster, despite my love for frosting).

They have an even better topping…

A little slice of brie and another small piece of dried fig. I put the brie and fig on right when the cupcakes came out of the oven. The brie got a little melty and I kind of loved it.

Hello, cupcake! These were pretty fantastic. Yes, you should probably be a fan of brie to enjoy these, but I didn’t find the cheese overpowering at all and loved that I could definitely taste the flavor from the parsley.

I served by brie and fig cupcakes with marinated tuna steak and some leftover black bean and corn soup. It made the perfect little carb-y side. And the cheese kept them nice and moist, so you really didn’t need to add any butter.

But as savory as these are, they also had a touch of sweetness to them from the figs. And I can see them being really good with a little bit of jam. Maybe a red currant? Or even a blueberry jam. This could be a delightful morning breakfast…

Are you a fan of savory cupcakes?? What’s your dream combination?

Happy Friday!! My weekend is going to involve a bunch of relaxation, tons of work (Chels and I are teaching a blogging class at the BCAE next week!), and a few more wedding venue visits. I’m so happy it’s the weekend!

[Sues]

(doesn’t she look comfy? via Anne Taintor)

I have a deep appreciation for nature, but just don’t feel the need to spend the night in it. I know, I know. I’m just playing up the stereotype of granola and all that

But guess what? I do enjoy eating granola. From time to time, that is. I’m one of those people who will plow through half a box of cereal in a morning because it’s SO good and I just can’t stop. And even though this granola is still packed with nuts and sugars, and stuff like that, it just feels better. Because it’s homemade. AND it has pumpkin in it. Yes, it’s cranberry pumpkin granola, making it your perfect, “hey, it’s November and it’s getting cold and I feel the need to store food in my cheeks like a chipmunk.” Just me? All I’m saying is that it’s the perfect seasonal snack.

Cranberry Pumpkin Granola (makes about 6 cups):

• 1/4 C unsalted butter
• 1/4 C pumpkin puree
• 1/2 C maple syrup
• 4 C old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1/4 C roasted, unsalted sunflower seeds
• 1 C dried cranberries
• 1/4 C pecans, chopped
• 1/4 C walnuts, chopped
• 1/2 C shredded coconut
• 1/4 t ground cloves
• 1/4 t ground nutmeg
• 1/2 t ground cinnamon
• 1/2 t fine sea salt

Set oven to: 300 degrees

And it’s super duper quick and easy, too!

Melt the butter, pumpkin, and maple syrup in a saucepan.

Cook on medium for about 5 minutes.

While that’s cooking, get out a large bowl and combine the oats, sunflower seeds, cranberries, nuts, and coconut.

Mix it all together.

And pour the pumpkin “sauce” over the oat mixture. Add in the spices and salt and stir everything together.

Grease 2 medium baking sheets with butter. And divide the granola on the two sheets, spreading into one layer.

Bake for 45 minutes at 300 degrees. But for best results, make sure you stir the granola every 15 minutes or so. And rotate the pans if needed.

And now? You have homemade granola! Cranberry pumpkin granola at that.

You didn’t think I was really going to let the pumpkin recipes go just yet, did you? This might not necessarily be an “orange” recipe, but it does use my favorite orange ingredient!

I’ve been thoroughly enjoying having 6 cups of granola around the house. And even though it’s awesomely delicious, I haven’t been pigging out on it. Maybe it’s because I put my tender loving care into making it myself?

This cranberry pumpkin granola is so good, if you packed me a big bag of it, I might even go camping with it. Just kidding. (and yes, I feel the need to say I’m kidding or else Chris, my sister, and brother-in-law will have my camping bag [pink Vera Bradley duffle] packed for me before I can even get this granola in the oven. Still. Not. Happening).

That said, this granola is pretty darn good. And I’d totally sit around a campfire and eat it or snack on it while on a hike. And then head back to my own super comfy bed for the night. And my UNH sweatpants and Ugg slippers. Wait, it’s November. It’s cold. I’ll settle for eating this in front of the fireplace. FINE, I don’t have a fireplace. The heater will do.

Are you a “granola” person?

[Sues]

Vanilla Date and Ginger Smoothie (serves 2):

• 1 C nonfat yogurt
• 1 C nonfat milk
• 1 C  pitted  dates
• 1/8 C candied ginger (more if you love ginger!)
• 1/2 t vanilla extract
• 2 C ice cubes

Put yogurt, milk, dates, ginger, and vanilla in the blender and puree until smooth.

Add ice cubes and puree until the mixture is thick and smooth.

Serve! In your personalized WANM travel mugs if you have them. Which you probably don’t. So any mug will do!

Creamy Cucumber Chive Cups (makes 24):
Adapted from Whole Foods

• 3 cucumbers
• 3/4 C low-fat cottage cheese
• 1/4 C nonfat plain Greek yogurt
• 3 T chives, finely chopped and divided
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 3 to 4 dashes hot sauce
• 1/2 smoked salmon (use pitted kalamata olives if you don’t like smoked salmon)

Cut off ends of cucumbers and peel 2 evenly spaced strips from each cucumber. Cut cucumbers into 1-inch slices and scoop out the seeds from the center of each slice (be careful not to cut through to the bottom).

In a food processor, puree cottage cheese, yogurt, 2 T chives, pepper, and hot sauce.

Spoon the mixture into the cucumbers and top with salmon. Chill for an hour or two before serving.

Curried Chicken Salad with Grapes (serves 4):
adapted from epicurious

• 1 medium onion, chopped (1 cup)
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon minced peeled ginger
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 medium tomatoes, chopped (1 cup)
• 1 cup plain yogurt
• 2 tablespoons cilantro
• 1 rotisserie chicken, meat coarsely shredded (3 to 4 cups)
• 1 cup red grapes, halved

Cook onion, garlic, and ginger in oil in a skillet over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add curry, cumin, and 1 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook, stir for about 2 minutes.

Add tomatoes and cook over medium-high heat, stirring, until sauce is just thickened, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and stir in yogurt, cilantro, and chicken. Cool to room temperature.

Marinated Olives:

• 1/2 cup fresh tarragon leaves
• 1/4 cup fresh rosemary
• 2 cups drained green olives
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1 teaspoons fennel seeds
• 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 1 teaspoons dried basil, crumbled
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Chop tarragon and rosemary. In a bowl stir together all ingredients. Marinate olive mixture, covered and chilled, stirring occasionally, at least 6 hours and up to 3 days. Bring olive mixture to room temperature before proceeding.

To serve olives, transfer to a bowl with a slotted spoon.

Quinoa Salad with Pomegranate, Mango, and Goat Cheese with Apple Cider-Dijon Mustard Dressing:

• 3/4 C quinoa (uncooked)
•  1/4 C pomegranate seeds
• 1/2 C mango, chopped
• 1/2 C goat cheese, crumbled
• Salt and pepper to season
• 1/2 C apple cider
• 2 T dijon mustard

Cook the quinoa according to directions. Mix with pomegranate, mango, and goat cheese. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Lightly whisk apple cider and dijon mustard and pour over salad. Pour ahead and let it marinate or wait until you get to your destination to dress.

Cherry Orange Oatmeal Bars (serves 12):
Adapted from Whole Foods

• 3 C rolled oats
• 1/3 C smooth peanut butter (or any smooth nut butter of your choice)
• 1 C dried cherries
1/4 C pumpkin seeds
•1/2 C orange juice
• 1/3 C honey
• 1 t ground nutmeg
• 1/2 t salt
• 3 egg whites
• 2 T ground flaxseed

Mix together oats, peanut butter, cherries, pumpkin seeds, orange juice, honey, nutmeg, salt, and egg whites in a bowl.

Press firmly into a well-oiled 8-inch square baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown around the edges, about 35 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes and then sprinkle flaxseed over the top. Cut into bars (or whatever shape you want!) when it’s cooled completely.

Snack on these when you’re feeling low on energy and need a pick-me-up! Like when you see about 5 more stores you need to go into before you can go home.

We hope these recipes get you through your next marathon shopping trip

[Sues and Chels]

I decided to save the best for last. One of my favorite food combinations is watermelon and feta cheese. Although it sounds strange, the sweet and salty pairing always wins. I’m looking at you, bacon and chocolate.

This dish is inspired by Vlora restaurant on Boylston Street in Boston. It was actually the first place I ever had watermelon and feta cheese together and where I fell in love with it. You can find the similar dish on Vlora’s menu, it’s an appetizer called the Watermelon and Feta Tidbit. It’s one of their most popular menu items and if you have a pulse you will run there now and try it yourself

Here’s what you need (for 3 cubes of watermelon):

• watermelon, cut into cubes
• drizzle of balsamic vinegar
• Athenos Feta Cheese, I used the mild “chunk”

see… “chunk”

Here’s what you do:

• After I cubed a few pieces of watermelon I cut slices of feta and drizzled them with the balsamic vinegar. I added a touch of sea salt and fresh black pepper on top. I rested all of the watermelon on small beds of peppery arugula! Yowza!

This is a quick and absolutely beautiful dish to create. I think the fun thing about it is if you’re entertaining, people will be impressed by its uniqueness… it’s a definite conversation starter In a few speedy minutes I had a refreshing mid-day snack that I enjoyed with my feet up outside on my deck taking in the final day of July. And what a beautiful one it is.

———-

Other Athenos Feta news:

The winner of our final Athenos Feta Friday Giveaway is: Meghan of Travel, Eat, Love! Who said: I hope the move went well! We always have our bed and bedding ready so that we can crash after moving everything. That and face wash, toothbrushes, contact solution, anything I need for bed time. Then go out to dinner Congratulations, Meghan! We’ll be in touch with you soon

This month, we 120% took the plunge and made a Change for the Feta by making it our goal to create some truly special and unique recipes. Take a look back at our Athenos Feta creations for the month of July:

Colorful Quinoa Salad
Grilled Chicken with Red Pepper Sauce and Feta
Mango and Feta Salad
Blueberry and Feta Salad
Roasted Beet Salad with Feta and Mint
Egg Salad with Spinach and a Feta Blend
Sweet Potato Fry Salad with Feta
Pasta with Green Vegetables, Herbs, and Feta
Couscous and Feta-Stuffed Peppers
Mediterranean Pasta with Chicken Sausage, Olives, Broccoli, and Feta
Toasted Chickpea, Tomato, and Feta Salad
Pan-Roasted Corn Salad with Tomatoes and Feta
Grilled Salmon, Roasted Red Pepper, Moroccan Spiced Chickpea and Feta Salad
Shrimp and Feta Orzo Salad
Spinach, Baked Zucchini Chips, and Feta Salad
Cucumber and Feta Salad
Grilled Avocado with Tomato and Corn Salsa and Feta
Tuna Salad with Feta
Roasted Carrot Salad with Feta and Parsley

This was such a fun opportunity and incorporating Athenos Feta cheese into our salads, almost daily, was far healthier than using other cheeses… so we could be sure to maintain our Summer figures

To learn more about Athenos and for more feta inspired recipes, become an Athenos fan on Facebook.

Thank you to Athenos and thank you to our lovely readers for participating so much and offering all of your feta suggestions!

[Chels]

Here’s what you need for one serving (I mostly eyeballed my measurements but you can find a more exact recipe here):

• 1/2 of a large zucchini, cut into 1/4″ thick slices
• 1/4 cup dry bread crumbs (I used panko since that’s what I had on hand, you could also use seasoned bread crumbs)
• 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
• ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 egg (I used the entire egg, you can also use just the egg white)

Here’s what you do:

• Preheat oven to 475 degrees.

• In a small bowl mix bread crumbs, Italian seasoning, pepper, and parmesan cheese.

• Place the egg in a separate bowl, dip the zucchini slices in egg, then coat with the bread crumb mixture.

• Place all slices on a greased baking sheet. I sprayed mine with a bit of olive oil.

• Bake for 5 minutes then flip each slice and bake for another 7-10 minutes until golden brown and crispy.

The taste and flavor were definitely there but this is definitely a work in progress. I think next time I’d like to cut the slices just a tad thinner because they brown a bit better than the thicker slices. They’re more “chip-like” and crispy when they’re thin, too!

After the chips were done baking I realized I hadn’t eaten any lunch so I topped a bed of spinach with some fresh sweet corn, Athenos Tomato and Basil Feta, and the zucchini chips. And I quickly whipped up a dressing that consisted of plain Greek yogurt, fresh parsley, red onion, lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, cumin, and tomato which worked really well and was just the right consistency with the zucchini chips!

And now it’s Feta Friday Giveaway Time! Making a change for the Feta one giveaway at a time

The prize pack includes:

• Free Athenos Feta coupon
• 1-month gym membership to LifeTime Fitness
• Athenos water bottle
• Athenos Feta recipe booklet
• Salad shaker travel container (great for picnics or taking your lunch to work!)
• Reusable lunch bag

Just like I created zucchini chips completely unplanned, share with us your best accident turned “this is a keeper recipe”! Leave a comment on this post with your story by Tuesday, July 27 11:59pm EST for your chance to win the prize pack! We’ll randomly select a winner and announce it next week

Happy weekend, friends!

[Chels]

Here’s what you need:

• 4 boiled eggs, I kept the yolks of 2
• 1/4 cup cooked and drained frozen spinach
• 2 Tablespoons feta, I used 1 tablespoon Athenos traditional and 1 tablespoon Athenos lemon, garlic, and oregano for some added flavor (LOVE THIS!)
• 1 tablespoon parmesan
• 1 tablespoon plain Greek yogurt (original recipe calls for light sour cream, I like to substitute Greek yogurt in dishes when I have it on hand!)
• Salt and pepper to taste

mmmmmmmmmmm… hard boiled eggs are thebomb.com

I promised you this was simple… Just roughly chop the eggs and mix all of your ingredients together and you’re done!

On a piece of whole wheat toast, I arranged the egg salad on a thin layer of mayo and a bed of greens.

This was surprisingly good… I’m not going to lie I was a little skeptical of this healthier version! I normally make egg salad the old fashioned and classic way with mayo but this felt so clean and fresh! Not to mention I ate it about 4 hours ago and my “fullness” is just now wearing off. I think for tomorrow’s lunch I’m going to nix the bread and use the leftover egg salad IN an actual salad! Two salads for the price of one

Sorry for the short post but the cursor and mouse on my laptop is extremely possessed today and it’s already taken me over an hour just to get this post done! It keeps moving all over the place and deleting what I type! Whyyy?! Bringing it to the doctor tomorrow… It’s no way for a blogger to live!

[Chels]

Because, really? HOMEMADE POP TARTS? There is absolutely no way I can even think about saying no to attempting it.

Homemade Pop Tarts:

Pastry:

• 2 C all-purpose flour
• 1 T sugar
• 1 t salt
• 1 C (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cold and cut into pats
• 1 large egg
• 2 T milk

Brown Sugar/Cinnamon Filling:

• 1/2 C brown sugar
• 1 to 1 1/2 t cinnamon
• 4 t all-purpose flour
• 1 large egg to brush on pastry before filling

See? There aren’t too many ingredients; how hard could they be, right? But for real right now? They actually were not that difficult!

First, whisk together the flour, sugar, and salt. Then chop up all the butter (make sure it’s pretty cold) and work it in with your fingers, a pastry cutter, or a food processor.

I used my little pastry blender, but don’t worry because using your fingers is just fine! Do this until it’s blended, but pea-sized lumps of butter are still visible and the mixture holds together when you squeeze it.

Whisk one egg and the milk together in a separate small bowl. And then stir them into the dough, mixing just until everything is cohesive.

Flour a surface. Make sure you give yourself plenty of space and use tons of flour! It will be a huge pain if your dough starts sticking to the counter.

Divide the dough in half and shape each into a smooth rectangle, about 3×5 inches. Then roll the dough out (or if you want, you can wrap it in plastic and refrigerate for up to 2 days).

I just bought the cutest little Martha Stewart mini rolling pin (which I cannot find anywhere online! But I got it at Macy’s).

Roll the dough into a rectangle about 1/8 inch thick, large enough that you can trim it to an even 9×12″.

The recipe says to cut the dough to form nine 3×4″ rectangles. But my dough was somehow already off when I rolled it out (I don’t think I divided it evenly enough, so when I tried to roll it out any more, it was getting too thin). So instead, I made six 3×5″ rectangles.

The moral is, you don’t have to follow the EXACT measurements; do what works best for you. I liked that my pop tarts were 3×5″ because it seemed more normal pop tart size.

Now, beat the additional egg and brush it over the dough. This is the inside of the pop tart and the egg will help “glue” the top layer of dough on.

I placed the dough rectangles on my parchment paper-lined pans.

Make the filling! I used the brown sugar/cinnamon filling, but Smitten Kitchen has the recipes for a few other fantastic-sounding ones as well. I was going to try chocolate too, but I decided not to get too crazy for my first attempt.

For brown sugar, cinnamon, mix the sugar, cinnamon, and flour together.

Yum yum, I love anything cinnamon!

Place a heaping tablespoon of the filling onto the tart dough, making sure you leave a 1/2 inch perimeter around the dough. Next time I’m adding more filling and spreading it out a bit more because they definitely could have used more filling.

Then cut your second rectangle of dough the same way as the first one. Since this one was bigger than my first, I got some extra rectangles out of it.

Then place a second rectangle of dough on top of the first, making sure you press around the edges to seal. I had to trim some of my rectangles more since they weren’t the exact same sizes (I HATE measuring things slash math).

Use the tines of a fork to press all around the pop tart, creating the pressed edges. Then poke multiple holes on the top so the steam can escape from the tarts. I used a chopstick to poke the holes on the tops.

I also brushed my tarts with more egg wash and sprinkled some more cinnamon mixture on top. I’d say the egg was not necessary (the recipe didn’t call for it) as it turned my tarts a bit more golden than they maybe should have been.

Now, put the tarts in the fridge for about 30 minutes, while your oven heats to 350 degrees.

Bake them for 20-24 minutes, until they’re a light golden brown.

Dig in! Or wrap in foil and put in a box. Not really, but don’t they look a lot like pop tarts? They tasted like them too, but MUCH better! Fresher and less dry and artificial.

My pop tarts were far from perfect. But now if I were to make them again, I’m convinced they would be a whole lot better! And frankly, I’m kind of impressed they came out as well as they did the first time around. Definitely one of the more successful baking experiments I’ve done.

I wasn’t really allowed to eat Pop Tarts as a kid and most especially not for breakfast. And honestly, I probably still wouldn’t eat these for breakfast, but as a treat for a fun snack or dessert, they’re are perfect. And Smitten also gives a whole wheat version, which would be even more nutritious. But everyone on Smitten’s post was talking about the crazy things you could do with these, like a savory version! Spinach and cheese? YUM!

So yes, make these. If mine came out this not-horrible on my first try, yours likely will come out 10 times better!

What are some of your favorite old school treats that you want homemade versions of?

Do you think it’s possible to make your own Gushers? If so, I totally need to try!

I’m up bright and early today sitting at the Richmond Airport. I spent the weekend in Virginia with Chris’s family and had a fabulous time. It’s a quick flight back to Boston, where I will begin my lovely Monday work day.

Happy Monday to everyone!

[Sues]

Minted Pea Mash:

• 1 T unsalted butter
• 2 bags (10 oz. each) frozen peas, thawed
• 1/3 C lightly packed fresh mint leaves, coarsely chopped
• Coarse salt and ground pepper

So, like I said, the recipe is super easy-peasy. All you do is melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Then add the peas and cook, stirring constantly until warmed through, about 5 minutes.

I love cooking in my parents’ kitchen where everyone is hanging out! One of my favorite things about getting together with my family is playing board games. This time we played some Trivial Pursuit… We actually tried to play it on the Wii, but something was wonky with the television, so we were forced to go back to the “old days.” We also had some fun with “Words with Friends” on the iPads!

My dad actually had a bunch of mint in the garden, so I used some super fresh homegrown mint with the store-bought.

I love the way my hands smell after chopping mint! I needed quite a bit as the recipe called for 1/3 C. So, I chopped it up.

This recipe works best if you have a food processor, but you can certainly use a blender, too. Just put the peas in the food processor and pulse them until they’re coarsely pureed.

To some this might not look incredibly appetizing, but to my pea-loving self, this looks like heaven.

I left the peas in the food processor while we headed out to the deck for a brief family photo shoot.

The still newlyweds. Can’t believe it will be a year in September!

Me and Chris… And my incredibly pale arm.

OK back to the peas (good thing this recipe is super uncomplicated or I would not be able to handle everything going on around me).

Stir in the mint and season with salt and pepper. That’s it!!

We sat out on the deck to enjoy our appetizer. It was the perfect evening. Not hot, but warm enough to sit outside and enjoy the last couple hours of sunlight.

The dip was SO vibrant and pretty. Helloooo, green!

I wasn’t totally sure what to serve it with, but my sister brought some parmesan crackers and mini rye toasts, both from Trader Joe’s. Both worked well (and were delicious!).

Martha Stewart also suggests trying it as a side with roasted chicken. Yum yum!

The sky was so pretty, I couldn’t resist snapping a few photos.

I’m sure they didn’t think this photo would end up on the blog:

I was too into dinner that I totally forgot to take any photos. My dad made absolutely DELICIOUS barbecue ribs, along with baked beans and pasta salad. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

Oh, and don’t forget dessert! My sister made these yummy chocolate cupcakes with delightful frosting.

I’m kind of excited about this minted pea mash and have a feeling I’ll definitely be making more of it in the future. It’s so quick and easy and I think it can be used in alll sorts of dishes! Or I could always add something like bacon too it (!!!).

What’s your favorite super simple, barely any ingredients needed recipe?

[Sues]

I had some Arnold Sandwich Thins along with lots of random goodies in the fridge and pantry so I headed to the Arnold Bread website to see what I could find. The one that stood out to me was the Apple, Walnut, and Cheddar Cheese sandwich. Now, with my annoying nut allergy I decided to substitute the walnuts for sunflower seeds. I just improvised the recipe a tad since I didn’t have sprouts on hand. Side-note: sunflower seeds are the perfect snack to munch on while watching tv… or tonight’s Celtics/Orlando game

Here’s what you need:

• Bread of choice. I used an Arnold sandwich thin
• Walnuts (or in my case sunflower seeds)
• Sharp cheddar cheese
• Cream cheese
• Apple
• I also used a slice of turkey… cause why not?!

Here’s what you do:

Well, simply layer each component. I did cream cheese on one slice, added sunflower seeds, a piece of turkey, apple slices (LOVE apples in sandwiches, yowza!), then add your sharp cheddar cheese.

• Once the cheese is piled high, place the loaded piece of the sandwich thin under the broiler for a minute or two, until the cheese has melted nicely! mmm, melted cheese, marry me. If you’d like you can toss the empty slice of the sandwich thin in the toaster to lightly toast it. The first time I made this I put both slices in the broiler. Needless to say the empty slice almost resulted in an apartment fire… things got a lil’ smoky

I’ve been eating this particular sandwich sooo much lately for both lunch and dinner. I was surprised by how satisfying it was… especially for dinner. It’s loaded with lots of goodies and holds me over quite nicely which is good if you’re on the run a lot or want a quick little somethin’ somethin’ to give you a boost of energy!

Also, I’m such a big fan of the cream cheese on sandwiches lately! I highly recommend it.

Does anyone know if food allergies will ever go away? I know my nut allergy has definitely gotten better over the years… I used to be allergic to peanuts (which are legumes!) when I was younger but now I’m not, thankfully! So I’m hoping to outgrow my tree-nut allergy too. Is it wishful thinking?! I want to be able to eat everything

Oh… GO CELTICS!!! 2-0!

[Chels]