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Cilantro lime mayonnaise

Cilantro-Lime Mayonnaise

I figured this mayonnaise finally deserved a post of its own instead of being hidden in the middle of a burger post.  I make this mayo up way too much and my friends make it up as well and complain about having to scroll through a turkey burger post to get the recipe.  Hey, I get it, it’s easier to just have a designated post for each recipe, right?

Vegetarian banh mi with siracha mayo.

Vegetarian Banh Mi Sandwich with Sriracha Mayonnaise

I’m sure there are those of you that have never heard of a banh mi sandwich before, am I right?  You’re probably thinking what the heck is a banh mi sandwich.  Well, I didn’t know what one was either until this past spring when my friend Carolyn showed some photos on Instagram of her fixings for a banh mi sandwich.  Since then, I’ve seen these sandwiches popping up everywhere, it’s like my eyes were opened.  Banh mi is the perfect combination of french bread combined with Vietnamese ingredients like cilantro, pickled vegetables, and chilies.  Banh mi’s can be made with chicken, pork, beef, tofu, eggs and salmon and the sauces or spreads vary with each sandwich.  I chose to make a vegetarian version with roasted tofu from my miso kale salad recipe, and a sriracha mayonnaise sauce that our family loves.  This sriracha mayonnaise is also a great dip for fries, onion rings and as a topping for burgers.

Avocado-Tahini Dip

This is the tale of the salad dressing that transformed into a dip.  It sounds like the start of a fairy tale don’t you think?   Except turning from a salad dressing into a dip doesn’t sound like a great transformation, (kind of like a prince turning into a frog) but it is, so it’s a story with a happy ending.

Citrus marinaded chicken- three pieces on the table.

Citrus-Marinated Chicken

Ok, I have to say that this is one of my favorite chicken recipes ever, and Zoe and Eli both agree with me. We tried this the other night, gave each other the thumbs up, and said that this chicken was totally blog worthy and need to be posted sooner than later. The chicken is SO moist and full of flavor from the citrus marinade, and the skin gets all crispy and yummy from cooking under the broiler. This is seriously going to be one of my new go-to recipes for chicken, and the best part is that it can be made year round because it’s cooked under the broiler. Yippee! You could also grill it up, or even sear it in your cast iron skillet and then bake it off in the oven.  Hey, it’s a flexible chicken recipe!  I can see paring this chicken with some 5-minute roasted cauliflower or 5-minute roasted Brussels sprouts in the fall and kale mashed potatoes in the winter. This chicken is total comfort cooking anytime of year.

Pineapple mint and banana smoothie

Pineapple, Mint and Banana Smoothie

This pineapple, mint and banana smoothie is my family’s new favorite breakfast and afternoon smoothie. It’s tangy and minty and honestly tastes like a creamsicle. I bet even your pickiest kids will love this smoothie. I made this smoothie up for Zoe the week she attended her intense dance camp. She’s not a huge fan of bananas, but I wanted her to get some potassium in her diet, so I knew the smoothie route was the way to go. I also read that pineapple contains a substance called bromelain, which is a group of digestive enzymes that can be instrumental in reducing inflammation and healing wounds. This smoothie sounded like the perfect breakfast smoothie for a girl that was going to be on her feet dancing for 6 hours a day.

israeli couscous salad in a bowl

Israeli Couscous Salad

I love it when I find new salads or summer side dishes that can be made ahead to marinate all day or made on the fly to eat up right then and there. This salad is one of those salads that tastes great either way. This is the perfect salad to bring to a potluck, picnic or to serve up in your own backyard. It’s full of summer flavor from the fresh mint, parsley and cherry tomatoes. We love pairing this salad with chicken drumsticks and one of my kale salads for a family backyard dinner. You can really make this a year round salad by adding seasonal ingredients to the mixture, like asparagus in the spring, cauliflower or broccoli in the winter.

grilled bruschetta with heirloom tomatoes

Grilled Bruschetta with Heirloom Tomatoes

I’m sure you’ve all seen the cover for the July/August edition of Martha Stewart Living in either a book store or your grocery store. If you’ve seen it, then you know why I just had to run out and make up this bread. I opened up my mailbox last week and saw the cover showcasing this beautiful assortment of heirloom tomatoes on top of this toasted bread. I immediately went to the grocery store, bought me some heirlooms and made this up for lunch. I have to say that I was in food heaven. This bread is crunchy on the outside but soft on the inside from the juicy heirlooms and olive oil. The crunchy sea salt and fresh basil just give it another punch of flavor and texture. John and I split half a loaf up for lunch one day and paired it with my lacinato kale salad and drumsticks another night for dinner. I also brought this to a friend’s house and served it up as an appetizer. Let’s just say it was a hit with everyone. It’s truly the perfect summer bruschetta!

Marin Mama frozen s'mores

Frozen S’mores

Here’s the perfect summer s’more for those hot summer nights. These s’mores are a twist from the traditional s’mores because the chocolate is on the outside and they’re frozen. Yes, they’re frozen, am I tempting you yet? The best part is that they can be made year round, as they are cooked under a broiler instead of roasted over a campfire. So for those of you that don’t have a backyard fire pit, you’re in luck.

Easy overnight steel cut oats.

Easy Overnight Steel Cut Oats

So most of you know that I was a cereal addict since the age of 17. I literally ate a bowl of cereal everyday, usually grape-nuts topped with some other kind of fiberish cereal and granola. I’m one of those people that wakes up hungry and can’t sit around and wait a 1/2 hour for breakfast to cook, so cereal was the breakfast of choice, or should I say breakfast of convenience. Steel cut oats were reserved for those fancy hotel vacations or breakfast out with the family, as I was under the assumption that steel cut oats were a labor intensive and timely breakfast to whip up. I changed that way of thinking though when I cooked up my hot quinoa and oat cereal for the first time. I learned the trick to a quick breakfast of steel cut oats, and that was to bring them to a quick boil and then let them sit out overnight. I still eat cold cereal on occasion, but lately I have been devouring these steel cut oats, my 5 minute quinoa cereal and my quinoa and oat cereal. I would have to say that my breakfast routine has changed for the better!

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