Atole

Atole is a traditional Mexican drink enjoyed during the winter months (mostly December).  It's comparable to hot chocolate, but it's not.  The base is actually made from corn meal, sugar, and cinnamon.  And if you add chocolate to it, it's call champurrado.  Now before you decide that a drink made from corn sounds like the weirdest thing you've ever heard of, consider horchata.  Horchata is another Mexican drink made from rice water and cinnamon.  When I tell people what horchata is made of, they make the "that sounds disgusting" face.  But then they try it and realize how amazing it is.  Atole is like that.

Bucatini alla'amatriciana

This was one of my favorite dishes while I was living in Rome.  First, because bucatini is so much fun.  It looks like fat spaghetti, and is used in much the same way as spaghetti, but it's hollow in the center.  You'll get some impromptu music during the course of your meal... Second, because it just tastes amazing.  Don't let my picture fool you... it's so much more than pasta and chunks of tomato!  It's pretty simple to make, though some of the ingredients might be difficult to find.

Fresh Pesto

I never really liked pesto until I lived in Italy... probably because most pesto in the USA isn't fresh.  Since I've been keeping a summer garden, and basil being a fixture in it, I've started to perfect my pesto recipe.  I think I've gotten it down pretty well.

Capirotada

This traditional Mexican bread pudding is one of my favorites. I've even taken it to a Christmas party because it's so delicious. But it's meant for Easter time. And it's sooooooo good!

This recipe comes from my mother's family, which comes from the southwest.

Salmon & Quinoa Cakes

As any health-minded foodie knows, keeping new but healthy food on the dinner table can be a challenge.  I realized that  I was starting to cook the same thing over and over.  It was healthy and it was delicious, but it was always the same.  So time for something new!  And time to start using the veggies that are coming out of my winter garden!  This recipe is actually really simple, and manages to get fish, quinoa, greek yogurt and leafy greens all in to the same meal!

Couscous with Asparagus, Chard and Shrimp

This is what happens when I go grocery shopping with no real shopping list except "I should make something with shrimp this week because it's on sale."  And after having been on vacation for a week in a country that loves fried food, I was in desperate need of greens.

I have no idea what to call this because I just whipped it up and it's so delicious I just had to share it.  It's similar to a previous recipe I posted, but I was amazed at myself for how wonderfully this turned out for me just decided to throw in some asparagus and shrimp.

Rainbow Chard with Couscous

I made the mistake once of not removing the stems of chard before putting it in my soup... let me just say that they are quite bitter.  But if sauteed up with some garlic and lemon juice, they're not so bad.