You’ve probably seen the snowman in hot chocolate drinks. This was very cute and funny.
But… Have you ever eaten a snowman pizza? In all these years, this is the first I heard of this.
Then there are pancakes…
What other edible snowman have you seen?
Let’s have some fun.
I was out walking and saw so many dandelions. They are in season. A few years ago, I learned that the dandelion starts out as a yellow flower and then turns into the puff ball that we blow to make a wish.
When we blow on the buff ball, we are blowing the dandelion seeds into the wind…
Seems like we should hurry and make multiple wishes while ALL the seeds are flying off, right. Increase our chances of at least ONE wish coming true.
You can also eat them. My Italian relatives would go in the garden pulling the leaves and using them in salads and cooking them too. They taste like arugula.
So, here’s to DANDELIONS! Make a Wish!
Have you heard the latest news?
Lexus GX and Monogram debuted an SUV with a pizza oven built in. They created this for the 2024 Food & Wine Classic in Aspen, Colorado. Such a fun idea!
Sounds like this was a one-off. However, sometimes show pieces can become reality.
Who says it is just about burgers and hot dogs! Get a pizza oven too.
Happy 4th of July!
Recently, I had my annual check up. I heard the dreaded words, “Your cholesterol is high.” I’ve had this situation in the past, so I started researching online how to change my diet.
Salmon always comes up, so beneficial for our health in so many ways. BUT, I don’t like the fishy taste.
So, feeling like a little kid, I thought about how I could change the flavor. I decided to cut the salmon up in cubes, then marinated it in Teriyaki sauce. I’ve always cooked salmon with a little bit of garlic salt on it. Why not try something different. The result is in the photo.
Is the flavor better? Ah, a little, but still very fishy tasting, but more tolerable.
I always find it interesting when going out for dinner with people and they BRAG that salmon is on the menu as if it is the greatest thing to man kind. I tend to prefer white fish or shell fish. I feel like an outsider when they all order salmon and I say, “I don’t really like it.” You should see the horror on their faces!
Then, I remember years ago when I was used to eating white bread. That’s all we had as children. Slowly, I moved to eating healthier breads. First wheat bread, then multi-grain bread, etc. Now, I couldn’t even eat white bread unless it is sourdough bread.
So, won’t the same thing happen with salmon if I keep eating it? I’ll grow to like it???
Have a restful holiday weekend!!
Easter is early this year. The cookies in the photo are from “An Italian in my Kitchen.” I’ve been following Rosemary Molley, a Canadian, who married an Italian and has been living in Italy for over 25 years. On her website, she shares so many wonderful recipes she learned from her mother/n/law and just living in Italy.
Here’s a screen shot from her website: www.anitalianinmykitchen.com
She has great cookbooks too.
For Easter, she has a variety of breads, cakes, cookies that you can try out. If you are looking for a good Italian recipe, you’ll find so many great ideas. I like her soups, stews, pasta, pizza and dessert dishes. In fact, there is a lemon mousse I want to try.
Wishing those of you who celebrate this holiday a “HAPPY EASTER!”
It’s that time of year again. Il Pandoro is out and I must have one. In fact, for Thanksgiving, I brought one to my Italian mother. She was so happy, hands clapping, ready to make coffee or tea and have a slice. I warned her though, for some reason, this year, the texture was “different.”
It’s an Italian tradition to have this. Usually, people buy the Panettone, which has the fruit inside. It’s not my favorite, by the time I pull out all that fruit, there isn’t much cake left.
My daughter and I bought Il Pandoro at Jewel (our grocery store). Sorry, I should have taken a picture. It was the Bauducco brand. The texture was strange. It was like a soft dinner roll, instead of bread like.
Every year, I buy one or more. I vow to remember the brand that is the BEST. Of course, every year, I forget and start this process again. This Balocco brand is pretty good.
Next stop, Trader Joe’s for a box of Baci candies. They sell out FAST!
What is your favorite holiday food?
When I was at the grocery store, I saw Pierogi, so many choices. I have a friend who gets in the mood for them. It’s interesting, because they are like Italian ravioli. Then, I thought, you’ve got the Asian pot stickers. All a little different, but the same idea with a different name.
Do you have a preference for any of these? I wonder, do the Germans/Austrians have something like ravioli or pierogi? I know they make great dumplings.
Thinking of dumplings, I’m getting in the mood for Matzo Ball soup now!
Well, it’s Sunday, I decided to make waffles. I wrote about the Kodiak Cake brand mix the other day. Today I used the buttermilk and chocolate mix. Why not be adventurous. I topped my waffles with blueberries and raspberries that I picked in Michigan this summer and froze for winter. By the way, frozen raspberries are quite the treat. They change color and become darker once frozen, but the flavor is still there. I added some maple syrup. It’s the PERFECT breakfast!
My friend is in France…. she’s probably eating a wonderful croissant right now!
Wondering what YOU are having!
I’ve been trying to embrace this health craze. Less fat, more protein — pancakes, waffles, cakes – NOTHING is the same anymore. Lately, the talk of the town is the Kodiak Cakes brand. Different people I spoke to were raving about their high protein pancakes. Delicious and kept them full until 1 pm. Of course, I asked, “What are you talking about?”
I like to eat pancakes / waffles occasionally, so was not up to speed on this Kodiak Cakes brand. Turns out, Kodiak Cakes, has been around since 1995. The company was started by Joel Clark based on his mother’s buttermilk flapjack mix. They are located in Utah. Due to funding the company was slow to take off, but now it has and it’s the latest craze.
It’s an interesting story, you should read about it. Joel Clark was even on Shark Tank in 2014; however, he did not accept a deal with any of the Shark Tankers. That show though introduced his product, people were interested and sales took off at Target. 14 grams of protein per serving does sound good, right!
I bought a box of Kodiak Cakes and made pancakes. I have to say, they had a great chocolate taste. This chocolate mix though, I felt was heavy and the texture was more like a cake than a fluffy pancake. I found a recipe for using the Kodiak mix to make little muffins. I decided to make mini cakes instead. They are cute looking, but the recipe I used was not good. The texture of the cakes were so dense. I went by the reviews and they were saying how “fantastic” their muffins were.
Imagine a cake with these ingredients (too much protein): 1 cup Kodiak mix, 4 eggs, 1 cup unsweetened applesauce or 4 smashed medium bananas. Mix, cook at 350 until done.
Baking is about experimenting. We win some, we lose some, but we don’t give up.
I’m on a quest to make these little cakes healthy and delicious. I just need to fine-tune the recipe.
If you haven’t heard of Kodiak Cakes give them a try. They have all kinds of flavored mixes. You can’t go wrong! High protein, just add some fruit, light syrup – you’ll be in breakfast heaven!
Why do I resist eating oatmeal? Same feelings toward Greek yogurt or smoothies. As soon as I hear those words: oatmeal, greek yogurt and smoothies — I GET MAD!
I think none of us want something shoved down our throat, so to speak. Media, any kind, is on a health kick. That’s fine! I do my best to eat healthy, but sometimes they go OVER BOARD. They make us FEEL guilty. If we don’t eat oatmeal, greek yogurt and smoothies that ANY health issues we have are DIRECTLY RELATED to not eating these foods, THAT they TOLD US, we needed to eat, to STAY ALIVE!
Phew, my rant is complete!
I don’t mind these foods, I just don’t want to be told EVERY DAY to eat them. I feel like a little kid annoyed with his mother for telling him to drink his milk. Trying to change my mind set.
My ex/father/n/law was a doctor. He LOVED oatmeal. At 99 years old when he had his leg amputated from diabetes — YES, this was a sad situation, ALL he wanted was — OATMEAL!
I need to lower my cholesterol. First food on the list to help with this — OATMEAL. Laughing, the dreaded oatmeal. To enjoy oatmeal and cross off a lot of healthy food boxes, I got creative. I read walnuts help lower cholesterol. Also, they say, “An Apple a Day, Keeps the Dr Away.” So, walnuts and an apple went into the oatmeal.
I ONLY used 1/4 cup oatmeal, 1/2 cup too much. Start out small. Learn to EMBRACE the love of oatmeal.
See photo, my oatmeal looked and tasted good. Apple adds a lot of sweetness. Food is about presentation, Folks. I made the effort.
WARNING -> Eat oatmeal warm. Once it gets cold, it becomes a blob, not liquidy anymore.
You know what will happen, don’t you? Soon, I will ONLY want oatmeal for breakfast. I’ll even bring instant oatmeal packets on vacation.
Oh no… PLEASE, don’t say that will happen!
Brilliant Viewpoint 