Balsamic Pesto
So far today I’ve dropped my big girl at kinder, gone to a PTA meeting, taken Rosie to the vet, signed up for dance class, went to the dentist, replaced the water filter on our fridge and replaced the wheels on my dishwasher.
Balsamic Flank Steak with an Arugula and Shaved Parmesan Salad
For my birthday my mom and I went down to Hollywood and had lunch at Pizzeria Mozza. It wasn’t my first rodeo and knew that I needed the Bianca pizza and a Caprese salad. Stat. Leading up to the day, my girlfriend told me she had bought the cookbook that had all of the recipes from the menu. WHAT!?? How did I not know about this cookbook!?! We enjoyed a delicious lunch and finished it off with an order of the butterscotch buddino. And one order of the cookbook.
Heirloom Tomato Stack
Phew. What a week! I know I fell off of the radar for a while. A week ago today, my parents sent me a video of their house showing no less than four feet of snow. With blue skies and the flexibility in my schedule to pack the kids in the car with our “snow clothes crate” and go enjoy a few days in the snow – I jumped on it (ha!). Unfortunately I was also sick as dog. No voice, totally congested, achy…YUCK! I warned my mom and dad that I was SICK. They didn’t care. And neither did I. I just knew I had to do it because it would be my only chance this season to play in the snow with the girls. So, I picked up Pixie from school, loaded up the car and off we went! The girls were so stinkin’ excited.
A few hours later, the girls ripped themselves out of the car as quick as they could and dove face first into the snow. Snow bibs? Who needs ’em! Gloves? Naw! They played for about an hour and when the jeans were too wet and the fingers bright red, we retired inside for some cozy clothes and movies.
The next morning my mom had to head back to Los Angeles to work so my dad gave her a ride down the mountain to the main center in their community. As he was walking her to her car to make sure she could get out….he fell. On black ice. HARD. He came back up to the house limping and barely able to sit down in a chair. CRAP. (Side note- it occurred to me that had I still been nursing, a Boppy would make a wonderful “donut” to cushion one’s bruised tailbone)
Spinach Salad with Balsamic Onion Dressing
Salads are a pretty standard fallback meal in our house. They are healthy, delicious and easy to make. Most evenings we don’t sit down to eat our dinner until after Buggies and Pixie are fast asleep. And some days don’t go as smoothly as others. Which brings me to make an easy salad for dinner. Spinach is such a wonderful source of vitamins and is one of the healthiest leaves you can put in your body. Granted topping it off with bacon may not be the best thing for your body but my motto is, “everything in moderation.” In this picture you can see croutons which I don’t normally use. But they were calling my name in Trader Joe’s…
Hubby’s note: And my motto is, “WHERE’S THE BACON”?! Bacon + Avocado = Happy Hubby. Wait, did you say this was healthy?
Summer Skewers with Balsamic Syrup
We recently had a few friends over for an impromptu backyard BBQ. Ryan was dying to smoke a pork shoulder and I wanted chocolate sheet cake. That’s half a party right there isn’t it? I think so! Well, I wanted to make something light and refreshing as an appetizer. I was google-ing, searching recipe books, looking at our BBQ app on my phone – I was desperate for some inspiration! I had a watermelon, mini heirloom tomatoes and basil in my house. What to do…what to do. What I did was make these fabulously refreshing skewers. I layered the watermelon, basil, and tomatoes on skewers and served them up with a balsamic/sugar reduction. I made a few too many so I took them to my in-laws house the next day and my mother-in-law swooned. I know it’s “kind of” fall already but here in California, we have Indian summers that last well into October. Make these quick before watermelon is out of season and we have to wear close-toed shoes again.
Oh! And scroll to the end to see a picture of our four kids eating their corn. Silly little monkeys…..
Red Potato and Goat Cheese Stack with Basil Balsamic Drizzle
Last night I posted my recipe for Filet Mignon with Whiskey Cream Sauce. So far two of the comments on the steak refer to the potato stack next to the steak. I felt bad about not getting yesterdays post up until late so I am giving you another recipe today. When I made it for the first time, I didn’t dip the potato slices in the vinaigrette before assembling and that is a MUST.
My sweet girls are sick as sick can be so this post has to be short. I barely got any sleep last night and I would love to catch some shut eye before my angels wake up from their naps.
But get ready for tomorrow! It’s my birthday and the start of another fabulous giveaway!!!
Caprese Salad
Everyone has made or probably has a Caprese Salad recipe, right? So, I’m not going to say this is the end all be all recipe on my site. But it’s so tasty. And perfect for summer. If you have a farmer’s market in your town, go there. Get fresh locally grown tomatoes. Or even better heirloom tomatoes (my favorite!). But if you can’t get to a farmer’s market, I get the Trader Joe’s pack of mini heirloom tomatoes. They’re fabulous. 😉