I first posted this recipe on my Napa Farmhouse 1885 blog back in 2011. The frozen dessert was featured in a special issue of the now...| redorgreenchile.blogspot.com
We were invited to some friends home for dinner last Saturday night. I asked what we could bring and received the response, "Appetizers." I had a long week, so I decided to create an easy cheese plate...Three kinds of good cheese, pate, grapes, and crackers. We talked, drank lots of wine, and most of the cheese. Then we ate the delicious dinner my friend prepared and gobbled up the dessert.| red or green?
When I was a child, salad often consisted of iceberg lettuce, sliced tomatoes, and Thousand Island Dressing. Remember Thousand Island Dressing? Gloopy, gloppy, and ever so sweet, this was the salad dressing of the seventies. Salad, hamburgers, fish sticks; TI was served with everything.| red or green?
This is one of my favorite salads. Crisp greens and a delicious combination of fresh vegetables, olives, and black beans, tossed with a tangy ranch salsa dressing. Crunchy tortilla chips and roasted pepitas are added just before serving, and you have the perfect vegetarian main dish salad. Throw in some grilled chicken, beef or pork for added protein if you wish, but I like it as is.| red or green?
This recipe is so easy calling it a "recipe" may be a stretch. Fresh as possible spring sugar snap peas, good extra virgin olive oil, sea salt, and jarred sweet/hot cherry peppers for a bit of heat quickly sauteed for a few minutes, and you are good to go. The dish is delicious and so beautiful on a white plate.| red or green?
Ok, so I know spicy chile, garlic and kale pasta is not your typical Easter side dish fare but just imagine it paired with roast beef, or lamb or turkey. Gorgeous color, fresh taste, loads of flavor. It just shouts spring to me. Best of all you have a delicious main dish for your vegetarian friends. Happy Spring everyone!| red or green?
I first posted the recipe over on my Napa Farmhouse 1885 blog back in 2009. Some of my favorite food bloggers guest-hosted the site for a Thanksgiving roundup. My blogger friend Theresa Loe submitted this post. Since then, it has become one of my favorite cakes and I make it year round. The spicy ginger flavor is perfect for a blog about spicy food. Enjoy!| red or green?
There are only seven ingredients in this bark, so it is very important that each one is of the highest quality. Today, I used coconut, cashews, candied ginger and a touch of red pepper flakes for the candy, but you can substitute any combination of nuts, dried fruit, herbs, and flavorings you like. Just keep the proportions the same. The sea salt adds a delicious contrast to the sweet chocolate but leave it off if you wish.| red or green?
Are you a football fan? I am and this weekend is a major holiday in my home. Superbowl Sunday. The Denver Broncos vs. the Carolina Panthers. So the plan is to have an assortment of make-ahead dishes so that I can set everything out and not move until the end of the game. Since the commercials are as "must see" as the game...no breaks allowed| red or green?
I love mac & cheese and always forget how easy it is to make. The basic recipe of cheese and noodles is delicious of course, but additions like vegetables, protein and crunchy toppings make a good dish great. Today I am posting three recipes for mac & cheese that can be served as a main course. With a green salad, you have a meal.| red or green?
I love tacos...all kinds. I honestly could eat them every day so was thrilled to see a new "cleanse" book has been released. The Taco Cleanse: The Tortilla-Based Diet Proven to Change Your Life has 75 vegan taco recipes that have reviewers raving. It makes sense...steamed corn tortillas filled with healthy, delicious ingredients. What's not to love? But today's recipe does not come from the book...and is not especially healthy (hold the cheese & ranch for a healthier version)...but easy to...| red or green?
Soup week begins this year's weekly Comfort Food Feast recipe roundup from Food Network. I decided to share one of my family's favorite dishes, Green Chile, Turkey & Posole Soup. Dried Posole, aka hominy, is a staple in New Mexico and makes a delicious soup or stew. I use the leftover frozen turkey carcass from Thanksgiving and New Mexican green chile. (I always have a freezer full from the previous summer's crop.) It is more traditional to make this dish with red chile, but I like the combin...| red or green?
I love at least one spicy dish on my Thanksgiving and Christmas tables. The traditional menu, while delicious, screams for a bit of heat. These green beans are the perfect solution. Crisp-tender, mixed with pecans and sauteed onions, then bathed in a delicious chipotle infused butter. Quick, delicious and pretty. Happy Holidays!| red or green?
Ok, I am a bit of a rebel this week. My assignment from Food Network was Holiday Cookies. And I did share a delicious almond-sugar cookie with pepitas and dried apricot recipe over on my Napa Farmhouse 1885 blog. But I have been making these delicious brownies all holiday season, and I just had to share. Besides, brownies work on as assorted cookie platter, right?| red or green?
I love ranch dip but hate the ingredients used in that powdered mix stuff. Have you read the list of preservatives? No thank you. This version is made from lots of fresh herbs, sour cream, mayo, and spices. I have added canned chipotle peppers and their adobo sauce for flavor and heat.| red or green?
This is my new favorite fall soup. Tender roasted carrots, caramelized shallots, onion, creamy coconut milk and, for a bit of heat, jalapeno pepper, red pepper flakes and fresh ginger, blended together for the perfect mix of sweet, savory and spicy goodness. This may just be the perfect Thanksgiving first course.| red or green?
This is a delicious fall salad perfect for a casual night's supper or a more elegant dinner. I plan to add to my Thanksgiving menu. The brussels sprouts & avocado pairing is inspired by a vegetable recipe from Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten.The creaminess of the avocado and the sweetness of the roasted brussels sprouts is wonderful together. I turned the dish into a salad and added pomegranate seeds for taste, crunch, and color.| red or green?
I had a version of this dish years ago at a wonderful restaurant in Pasadena, California...the Parkway Grill. They prepared it by adding cilantro leaves, toasted pine nuts and excellent extra virgin olive oil to homemade pasta. Simple, beautiful and delicious. Of course, that depends on your feelings about cilantro. I find that people either love it or hate it. I fall in the love, love, love it category, so I have made this dish at home many times. I decided to tweak the recipe quite a bi...| red or green?
I have been having crazy busy days the past few weeks. You know that overscheduled life where meetings and appointments meld together into one big blur? That "all of a sudden it is 5:00 pm and I wonder where the day went" feeling? Well, welcome to my life these days. Don't get me wrong. I am loving everything I do. I am so fortunate to be able to give back by being involved with a number of non-profits for causes of which I have a great passion. My consulting business continues to grow. And o...| red or green?
I have been making these bars for 15 years. The original recipe came from Bon Appetit Magazine, and it was called Pumpkin-Chocolate Chip Loaf Cake. I liked the idea of baking this into bars instead of a loaf and topping with a drizzle of chocolate sauce. I have tweaked the recipe just a bit by swapping some of the white flour for white whole wheat, adjusting the spices and using coconut milk instead of regular whole milk.| red or green?
So, we have a number of friends with September birthdays. Our good friends Mary Lane and Doug hosted a September birthday bash last Saturday night, and I was in charge of appetizers. I wanted to make a healthy version of nachos and thought using sweet potatoes instead of tortilla chips would be an interesting twist. I soon realized that transporting nachos would not be a good idea...they would be cold and soggy by the time we reached our destination. Flash of inspiration? Mixing all the ing...| red or green?
OK, I admit it. I am on a caramel and apple binge. I posted a recipe over on my Napa Farmhouse 1885 blog for "Grownup Caramel Apples", baked apples topped with a caramel & scotch sauce. I have been sampling that dish all week. I decided I needed another apple & caramel recipe and, using leftover biscuits from brunch on Sunday, created spiced apple shortcakes. Drizzling caramel sauce over the dessert made it extra good. You can serve as is or pair with vanilla ice-cream. I am a fan.| red or green?
Ah, so summer is just about over, the first NFL football games were played yesterday (and tonight is Monday Night Football), there is a chill in the air most mornings...but 80 degrees in the afternoon...and my garden is producing mad amounts of tomatoes, zucchini, peppers, herbs, kale, onion, leeks, beets and chard. Yes fall is almost here. This means the weekly summer posts with Food Network have ended for the year but, never fear, Fall Fest has arrived. This means that each week a number of...| red or green?
My friend Cynthia sent me this recipe a few months ago, and I have been making versions of the original ever since. I have tinkered and tweaked so much that I guess you could I am addicted. The smooth and creamy chickpeas (a.k.a. garbanzo beans) are coarsely mashed and then turned into a cross between hummus and salad. Tahini, soy sauce, chili sesame oil and lemon juice are stirred into the mashed chickpeas and then tons of fresh vegetables and herbs are added to the dish.| red or green?
This is the perfect summer salad. Refreshing, healthy, delicious and chock full of the freshest, ripest summer produce imaginable. Peaches, tomatoes, fresh mint and toasted almonds. The splash of vinegar adds a touch of sweetness, the freshly cracked black pepper a bit of spice. I usually prepare the dish early in the afternoon and allow to chill in the fridge until dinner.| red or green?