strawberry lemonade

(I came looking for this recipe and found I posted it on my main blog, not here, so here is a reprint from over there, from last June)

Cold blender drinks and smoothies are some of my very favorite things. The boys and I usually make a smoothie a day for snacks, and when it’s hot [...]

Simple Salads

In the New York Times, Mark Bittman lists 100 Easy Salads for Summer.  Article here.

Crab Tacos

We love love these.   They’re easy and are fresh and perfectly summery.
4 Roma tomatoes, halved, seeded and sliced (I used 2 ample handfuls of grape tomatoes)
1 large clove garlic, minced
2 large jalapenos, halved, seeded, sliced, divided
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, divded
3 T fresh lime juice
1 t olive oil
1/2 c chopped onion
8 ounces cooked crab, shelled
8 taco [...]

Potato Salad with Artichokes and Asparagus

We LOVED this.
makes 6 healthy salad-side servings
Can be made up to 4 hours ahead of time and chilled.  Stir in asparagus just before serving.
8 oz asparagus, ends trimmed, spears cut into 1″ pieces
2 lbs red potatoes, cut into 1″ thick chunks
2 strips bacon, chopped
2/3 cup chopped shallots
2 t fresh chopped fresh rosemary
5 t olive oil
1 [...]

Ice Cream Cupcakes

(image and recipe from Joy the Baker)
Wouldn’t this be fun to make for a frozen dinner swap?

Cool Drinks for Spring – from Family Fun

LimeBerry Crush
2 pints of hulled strawberries
1 1/2 cups of crushed ice
1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
Pineapple Crush
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup pineapple juice
1 cup frozen pineapple chunks
1/2 frozen very ripe medium banana
Misty Melon Cooler
2 cups diced very ripe cantaloupe
1 cup orange juice
3 tablespoons sugar
Vanilla ice cream or frozen yogurt
Peanut Butter Blast
1/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
1 [...]

Watermelon Popsicles

It’s raining today, but we have a big ol’ bucket of watermelon in the fridge that isn’t going to last much longer.  When Costco gives you a large watermelon, make watermelon popsicles.
Make a simple syrup with 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup sugar, and cook on the stovetop just until the sugar is dissolved.  Put [...]

Loaded Baked Potatoes

I think we’ll do loaded baked potatoes for dinner tonight.  It’s still cold and snowy and something warm and low effort sounds perfect. I thought I’d make a list of toppings that we like and that sound good – did I miss your favorite?  Let me know!
broccoli
melted cheddar
bacon crumbles
tomatoes
green onions
chili
black beans
kidney beans
bleu cheese (with the [...]

Easy Key Lime Pie

My friend, Heidi, made this for me one night and it was so good.  Also, I went into labor the next day, so her husband now calls this “pop it out pie”.
1 – 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 – 6 oz can frozen limeade, still frozen
1 cup heavy cream
1 – 6 ounce graham cracker [...]

Baked Couscous Casserole with Summer Squash and Herbs

This is a great casserole for the summer time because it takes advantage of the summer veggies, but also because it can be assembled in advance and cooked at the last minute, plus it is healthy.  I always add shredded carrot and use some green squash too (for color…otherwise it is pretty much the same [...]