cilantro lime hummus

Chips and dip have to be one of the best snacks ever invented. Dear inventor-of-chips-and-dip, thank you, thank you from the very bottom of my little snack-loving soul! One day you will get a Bud Light Real Men of Genius commercial, or at least a hand shake, or maybe even a smooch on the cheek...  Chips and dip are so simple and kind of always appropriate. Throw them out before dinner, tote them along to a party, or grab them to curb those mid-afternoon hunger pains. Plus, I love how you can combine salty with so many different flavors. There are sweet, creamy, or spicy dips... The possibilities are rather endless.  Are you feeling mango salsa, ranch dip, pico?

Lately, Jason and I have been loving this cilantro lime hummus.  It's light, creamy, and goes great with blue corn chips. I love the slight twang the lime adds to the hummus.  So different than something you could find in the supermarket.  The other day I even used a scoop on my turkey burger as a substituted for mayo and mustard. It's delicious and it comes from a great cookbook, Fast and Simple Gluten-Free!

Click to read more ...

caprese bruschetta

Jason LOVES Italian food. LOVES IT!  Spaghetti, lasagna, baked ziti, alfredo… You name it.  That boy will eat it.  His favorite restaurant is Olive Garden.  We head there at least once a month for date night and he goes all out, appetizer, salad, marinara sauce for the bread sticks.   My favorite food is definitely  Tex-Mex, that glorious mix of American and Mexican, but I do to make a lot of it and Jason will get a little tired of it after about three or four meals in single week.  “Babe, not everything has to have salsa…”  Italian, however, he does not get sick of.  One month, I made only Italian food for dinner for nearly two weeks straight just to see if he could get sick of it.  I think it may have been the best two weeks of his life.  Unfortunately, by the end, I burst into tears at the sight of uncooked pasta or tomatoes.

Bruschetta is the salsa of Italian foods. It is one of those dishes that can easily be a meal, side dish, or appetizer.  It goes great on crusty bread or grilled chicken or stirred into cold pasta.  Sometimes, for lunch, I’ll whip this recipe up and enjoy it all by my lonesome.  Other days, I might serve it as a starter or plate it alongside Spaghetti or Mediterranean Chicken.  This bruschetta is divine.  Inspired by Caprese salad, it has juicy tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and lots of basil.  The bread is lightly toasted in a little bit of olive oil and garlic. I eat mine on Udi’s Gluten Free Whole Grain Bread, but I usually make Jason’s with Ciabatta or a loaf of crusty French bread.  It’s delicious either way!  Enjoy and have a great, Friday folks!

Click to read more ...

saucy shrimp

BUONGIORNO! Hope that you had a nice weekend... This weekend, we spent Saturday night in... Jason made brown butter steaks while I worked on mashed potatoes, some steamed broccoli, and this appetizer.  Copycat saucy shrimp.  It's our favorite dish at Bonefish Grill and I am happy to say this is pretty darn close.  

Shrimp, kalamata olives, and sun dried tomatoes are drowned in a sweet, limey, white white sauce.  Topped with chunks of barely melted feta, this may be the best shrimp you ever eat.  

Click to read more ...