Well a kitchen flop happened. Womp, womp. But it’s okay…it’s okay! These things happen from time to time, just a part of trying weird stuff in the kitchen.

A sweet ombré situation was attempted yesterday, unfortunately the situation didn’t result in utter deliciousness. Not to worry ’cause it will…oh it will! I’m determined. Tweaks will be made, adjustments will happen here and there. Maybe an all around color change? I’m thinking red to pink to white, instead of blue to turquoise. Thoughts…?

Let’s think of this like a group recipe testing situation. Collaboration between you and me! I like this!

In other news, I figured it was time to dig deep down into the archives of A Cozy Kitchen and break out some summertime recipes. Like any normal person, I definitely play favorites. Let’s explore!

Toasted Marshmallow Milkshake

Marshmallows all brown and toasty thrown into the blender with ice cream and yogurt. HELLO! This screams summer.

And totally add the super common, overly-used stripy straw. They’re still cute!

Listen. This is a weird pizza, I know. But trust me when I tell you that it’s weird in the best way possible.

Lemon, smoked salmon and créme fraiche! So good! The lemon slices are super thin, giving this pizza the perfect amount of tartness. Throw in the cold salmon and creamy créme fraiche? WHOA! Total show-stopper.

Cornmeal crusted fried pickle chips. Fry them up, serve them with a cold beer. The end.

I made this Mixed Berry Pie in about an hour and a half. I was on my way to a BBQ and was more concerned with curling my hair than making pie dough from scratch.

If you, too, find yourself in this predicament, make this pie. It was delicious and my hair and outfit looked nice. WIN!

Classic Icebox Cake

Five ingredients needed and no hot oven required. This cake takes about 30 minutes to assemble. I feel like I made this about a dozen times last summer.

Homemade Ding Dongs

These things take a little bit of effort. But oh man…if you show up to bbqs with homemade ding dongs, everyone will love you. It’s just a fact.

Fried Mozzarella Caprese Salad

Gooey, fried cheese topped with fresh pesto and served with thick slices of tomato. Heeyyyy!

Heirloom BLT Pizza

If your garden is giving you a crazy amount of tomatoes, this pie is for you.

Heirloom tomatoes not required, just thrown in for a bit of prettiness.

Watermelon Gin and Tonic

This is basically my go-to drink–a gin and tonic–all summer-fied. This watermelon syrup is easy. Buy good gin. Buy good tonic. It makes all the difference!

Go summer, go!

I’m doing this thing–not sure if I told you–where I cook alongside Bravo’s new show, Around the World in 80 Plates (which airs each Wednesday at 10pm/9pmc on Bravo!!). Wherever they go, I go…kinda sorta.

Each week they’re in a different international city cooking away and competing, stressing out and being judged, while I stay home, turn on some music, make a dish (corresponding with each city), all while intermittently checking Instagram and texting away–it’s fun!

This week’s show takes place in the gastronomy capital of the world, Lyon, France. Um…this location had my brain in knots because it’s like the equivalent of someone letting me loose in fifty combined Chanel boutiques and saying, You can have whatever one thing you like. Too many options! Too much pressure!

I had lots of elaborate dishes on my brain, but I kept circling back around to my favorite salad ever: Salade Lyonnaise. This salad is everything. There’s frisée tossed in a bacon mustardy vinagrette topped with a perfectly poached egg. And sprinkles of salt and pepper make it extra pretty. Nothing fancy. Total simpleness at its best.

I now welcome you to the sandwich version…

I figured that my favorite salad would taste even better sandwiched between two buttery brioche buns. I think I was correct.

The sandwich begins with some lardon being cooked up in a skillet. (Regular bacon will also work just fine!) Minced shallots are thrown in. Then some red wine vinegar (sherry vinegar will work, too!). Next up, some Dijon mustard.

This is the bacon vinaigrette. Soooo easy and quick. I can imagine this with a variety of different salads.

After you poach the eggs, you’ll toss the frisée with the bacon vinaigrette. Just a lil’ gentle toss!

Warm the bread. Add a few slices of tomatoes. Sprinkles of salt.

(Yeah, I’m actually walking through how to make a sandwich but I dunno what else to say right now.)

Add the frisée.

Then the poached eggs. Sprinkle on a little salt and freshly ground pepper…

Place the top on…and then BOOMBOOMPOW!

French sandwich heaven.

Salade Lyonnaise Sandwich

Print this recipe!

1/4 pound pork belly (or thick-cut bacon), cut into 1-inch cubes
1 shallot, minced
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
Salt
White Vinegar
4 large eggs
2 1/2 cups of frisée salad, washed and torn into bite-size pieces
Freshly ground pepper
4 brioche buns, slice in half
1 large tomato, sliced

1. Place cubes of pork belly in a skillet, set over medium heat and cook until bacon is crisp all over, about 10 minutes. Add minced shallot and cook until softened, a minute or two. Add red wine vinegar and mustard to the skillet and bring just to a boil, stirring, then turn off heat.

2. Meanwhile, bring about four inches of salted water to a boil in a medium pot, then lower heat to barely bubbling. Add a splash of white vinegar, which will aide the egg whites in coagulating. Take a spoon and swirl it around in the water, in one direction, creating a whirlpool. One at a time, break eggs into a shallow bowl and slip them into the center of the bubbling, swirling water. Cook eggs for about 3 to 4 minutes, just until the white is set and the yolk has filmed over. Remove each egg with a slotted spoon and drain briefly on paper towel.

3. Put frisée in a medium bowl. If necessary, gently reheat dressing, then pour over greens (they should wilt just a bit), toss and season with salt and pepper to taste.

4. Preheat oven to 300F. To assemble the sandwiches, slice buns in half and transfer to a warmed oven or conventional oven. Bake until just warm. Remove and lay out. Place a few slices of tomatoes on each bottom half and top with a pinch of salt. Top with a small handful of the frisée mixture, poached egg and garnish with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Recipe adapted from Mark Bittman’s Salade Lyonnaise

Yields 4 sandwiches

We’re flirxting with summer. By the way, “flirxting” is a technical term.

I’m so ready to do a canon ball in a pool; definitely not ready to be in a bathing suit in front of other humans. Ugh.

I’m looking forward to old movies in the cemetery whilst eatin’ cool snacks; not ready to need air-conditioning.

I can’t wait to bake up elaborate pies with fresh berries; not ready for fruit flies. They loooove my kitchen in the summer.

I’m excited for crazy salads (I can’t believe I’m saying that!), but when it’s hot outside all I want to eat are piles upon piles of grilled vegetables. I’m so not ready to sweat. There’s nothing adorable about the act of sweating, am I right?

I haven’t completely warmed up to the idea of summer but I’m attempting a full on embrace by drinking fruity drinks.

I’m staring with this strawberry cucumber-spiked agua fresca.

I recommend this to be placed in your summer arsenal.

If you’re invited to BBQs in the next upcoming months–which you will be because everyone likes you and you’re cool–I advise you to turn to this on occasion.

It takes about 15 minutes to throw together. It’s not expensivo. And everyone likes drinking pink, refreshing things.

Also, it’s awesome with a lil’ vodka thrown in.

And P.S.:

Happy Mother’s Day to all the mamas out there! We all appreciate you.

Strawberry Cucumber Agua Fresca

Print this recipe!

2 pounds of strawberries, hulled and halved
Water
6 tablespoons sugar
4 smallish English cucumbers, peeled, chopped
Juice from 2 limes

1. In a blender, add the strawberries, 2 cups of water and sugar. Blend for a minute, until mixture is smooth. Transfer strawberry mixture to a sieve which is lined with a few layers of fine cheesecloth. Let the mixture drain for 10 minutes, stirring the puree every few minutes to coax it along. Gather the ends of the cheesecloth and gently squeeze it to expel any remaining juice. Meanwhile, add the cucumber with 1/2 cup water to the blender (no need to clean it!) and blend until combined. Repeat straining process with cucumber puree.

2. Add the cucumber juice and lime juice to the strained strawberry mixture, along with 1 1/2 cups of water. Adjust sugar to taste. Transfer bowl to refrigerator and chill for an hour. Serve over ice.

Yields 4 cups

Some of the best stuff isn’t planned. And today I present you the most delicious accident that’s happened in a loooong time.

You’re actually supposed to be staring at cute little baked oatmeal cups. I pictured you whipping them up for a Mama’s Day brunch and setting them alongside blood orange mimosa, iced coffee and super pretty flowers. But I failed you. SAD! I failed to bring the cuteness, I think. But that’s okay, because as I sat there pondering why and how the baked oatmeal cups went wrong, I started spooning it straight out of the muffin tins…and found myself repeating this act over and over and over. My accident was delicious!

So, rather than trying to make something cute, I decided to remake the dish–tweaking a few things here and there–and just throwing it all in a casserole dish. Sometimes tasty trumps cute, you know. And that sometimes is riiiiight now…

This baked oatmeal is adapted from the raspberry version of Heidi’s I made back in November. There were caramelized bananas, a bunch of fall-like spices and frozen raspberries.

But now the sun is shining! Birds are chirping! We’re drinking iced coffee! And fresh strawberries are everywhere.

Strawberries are super cheap at the farmer’s markets right now. About a buck cheaper than the super markets. I took that extra savings and splurged a lil’ and used half of a vanilla bean.

I learned a major pro-tip on Food52 from Shuna Lydon (pastry chef at NY’s Peels). When she makes custards she never adds the vanilla bean to the milk, but instead adds the seeds to the sugar.

This totally makes sense because every time I add vanilla bean seeds to milk, I end up having to reach my fingers into the pot and break them up so they’ll be evenly distributed. Smashing them into the sugar makes total sense–it’s so much easier. Umm..hello! I have no idea why I never thought of this.

So, in this recipe we add the vanilla bean seeds to the sugar. Not sure I’ll ever do it the other way ever again. Life-changing lil’ tip, eh?

This baked oatmeal is such a pro at being re-heated. I urge you to make it on a Sunday night and reheat pieces throughout the week.

Healthy, delicious breakfast every day. YES! A good breakfast makes life awesome.

Strawberry Vanilla Bean Baked Oatmeal

Print this recipe!

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
1/2 vanilla bean, scraped
1/2 cup white granulated sugar
2 cups rolled oats
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups milk
1 large egg
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
3/4 cup sliced strawberries, divided

1. Pre-heat the oven to 375F with a rack in the top third of the oven. Generously butter the inside of an 8-inch square baking dish.

2. In a bowl, mix together the vanilla bean seeds and sugar, being sure to smash the vanilla bean seeds into the sugar, distributing them evenly. Add the oats, salt and baking powder.

3. In another bowl, whisk together the the milk, egg, and melted butter.

4. Arrange the strawberries in a single layer in the bottom of the prepared baking dish, reserving 1/4 cup for the topping. Cover the fruit with the oat mixture. Slowly drizzle the milk mixture over the oats. Gently give the baking dish a couple thwacks on the countertop to make sure the milk moves through the oats. Scatter the remaining strawberries across the top.

5. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, until the top is nicely golden and the oat mixture has set. Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes.

Recipe adapted from Heidi Swanson’s Super Natural Everyday

Welcome to project: Adrianna & Peas Fresh Peas: A Love Story.

I was a picky eater as a child. I think that’s normal, right?

I wasn’t nearly as picky as my friends, though. I knew kids who couldn’t have their foods touch. Like, their parents would have to make sure the mashed potatoes didn’t touch the carrots and the carrots didn’t touch the roast chicken and the roast chicken didn’t touch the mashed potatoes. You get it…

I like to think–as a parent–I’d put my foot down and tell my child to stop acting like a such a psycho, but I dunno, I think sometimes parents just want peace and quiet.

In my seven-year old brain, peas were totally tantrum worthy. I got super psycho over peas on my plate. Oh and I let my mama know! Whenever the poor woman would put peas in a dish, I’d do one of those passive aggressive flip-outs and just pick every. single. one. out. A small mound of them would end up on the edge of my plate. I was sending a message. A very strong one, you know?

I’ve gone my whole life disliking peas, picking them out of various stews, hating how chicken pot pies ALWAYS include them, and completely dismissing dishes highlighted them. But, I now realize I actually don’t hate peas. I just dislike the starchy, frozen, gross peas. I don’t like them mushy. And I don’t like them overcooked and olive-colored.

I like my peas fresh, brilliantly green. I like ‘em perky, straight from the pod.

If this makes me a pea snob, well then that’s cool.

Honestly, peas are cheap enough for all of us to be pea snobs.

To showoff my new found love, I decided to make some fritters inspired by the English dish, Mushy Peas.

I initially had grandiose plans to put all sorts of crazy ingredients in these things, but at the last second, decided against it. I wanted true pea flavor.

I think when ingredients and dishes are simple, the difference lives in the details.

My favorite part about this recipe is the sort of detailed blanching process. The boiling water is heavily salted and spiked with lime juice.

You guys, my late-night youtube watching has paid off! I learned that killer tip about the lime juice from Nigella Lawson. She was making a pea soup and she added lime juice, explaining the lime juice aids in keeping the peas a bright green color. Hello Nigella! We love you!!

To stop the cooking process, I transferred the peas to a salty ice bath. I seasoned the peas every step of the way. It paid off!

The peas were blended up with a heaping tablespoon of greek yogurt, sautéed shallots, a dash of salt and a few springs of mint. The whole mixture took a trip to the fridge to firm up a bit.

I shaped the patties and pan-fried them in about an inch of vegetable oil.

Serve these fritters with a side salad. Serve them with a steak. Make sure you top them with a dash of salt and a small dollop of sour cream or yogurt.

Super easy…(wait for it!) peasy.

(Do you see what I did there?!)

I created this recipe because I’m cooking along Bravo’s new show, Around the World in 80 Plates! It’s like Top Chef, except the chef’s travel, each week, to a new international city to compete. This week’s show takes place in London, England. The first episode airs this Wednesday at 10/9 central!

Pea Fritters

Print this recipe!

1 1/2 pounds of fresh peas (in their pod) or 1 1/2 cups of fresh peas
Salt
1 tablespoon lime juice
Vegetable Oil
1 shallot, minced
4-5 mint leaves, chopped
1 heaping tablespoon greek yogurt
1/2 large egg
2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
1 cup, plus 2 tablespoons, panko bread crumbs

1. Split the pods, revealing the pretty round peas. Transfer them to a small bowl and set aside. (It took me about 10 minutes to split open all of the pods.)

2. Bring a small saucepan of water to a boil. Add a teaspoon of salt and lime juice. Transfer peas to the saucepan and blanch for 2 minutes. Prepare an ice bath: a few cups of water and a heaping handful of ice. Add a teaspoon of salt to the water and stir. After the peas are done blanching, transfer them to the salt bath until they’re cold. Next, drain the peas in a colander and set aside.

3. Heat a teaspoon of olive oil in a skillet. When oil is hot, add minced shallots and cook until translucent, about 2-3 minutes. Transfer the shallots to a food processor, along with the mint leaves, greek yogurt and pinch of salt. Reserve 1/4 cup of peas and set aside. (We’re going to add these later.) Add the peas and pulse for about a minute. Mixture should be smooth but chunky. Transfer the pea mixture to a bowl and mix in the remaining 1/4 cup of peas, egg, flour and panko bread crumbs. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 45 minutes.

4. To shape the fritters, add two tablespoons of the pea mixture to your palm. Press the mixture, shaping it into a compacted disc. Repeat the process until you’re done with the mixture. You should end up with eight fritters.

5. Add 1-inch of vegetable oil to a cast iron skillet. When oil is hot, gently transfer pea fritters, cooking two at a time. Cook them on each side, about 2-3 minutes, and until golden brown. Drain fritters on a bed of paper towels. Transfer them to a warm oven until you’re done cooking all of the fritters. Serve with a dollop of sour cream or yogurt.

*Heads-up: This recipe was done in collaboration with Bravo for their show, Around the World in 80 Plates. Reimbursement for ingredients was given.

Biscuits are rarely dessert. WHY? They’re too delicious not to be dessert, amirite? Of course I am.

I decided to take these unjust matters into my own hands and make biscuits more like chocolate cake, but still biscuits. Do you see what I’m doing here?

When I set out on this journey, I figured I’d just make chocolate biscuits, smother them with butter, say it’s breakfast/dessert and call it a day. But then I peeped in the fridge and spotted some near-dying strawberries and whipped cream that was flirting with its expiration date, sooo…it became quite clear that I just needed to make a chocolate rendition of Southern strawberry shortcake.

This is typical of how kitchen awesomeness happens for me: a mishmash of refrigerator stragglers just trying to find a place in this world.

These biscuits are loaded with chocolate. First, there's Dutch cocoa powder mixed with all of the other dry ingredients. After it's mixed up, it looks a lot like Ovaltine.

Shout-out to Ovaltine for being a staple in my childhood!

Do kids still drink Ovaltine? I hope so.

P.S. Do you guys drink milk as an adult? I always think it's super weird when I see grown-ups drinking milk. I dunno--it might be just me, but I haven't had a full glass of milk in probably a decade.

Back to business.

Next, you’ll melt some chocolate and when it’s cool, you’ll mix it in the blender with the buttermilk and egg. It’ll look exactly like Ovaltine milk.

Don’t drink it–it’s deceiving. Buttermilk with raw egg. Not adorable.

(OMG – Why are we using a blender?! Something else to clean up! Yes, I know, I’m sorry. But it won’t blend properly by just mixing. The buttermilk will just have small clumps of chocolate throughout. Not what we’re going through.)

The dry and wet are all mixed up. And then the biscuits take a trip to the oven for about 15 minutes, give or take.

These biscuits are slightly flakey, very moist with a cake-like interior. A cross between a biscuit and a piece of chocolate cake. I’m mad at exactly none of this.

Whip up some whipped cream, slice some strawberries, macerate the heck out of them, and serve. It’s totally dessert time, yo!

Chocolate Buttermilk Biscuits

Print this recipe!

2 cups all-purpose flour
4 tablespoons dutch processed cocoa powder
2 tablespoons white granulated sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
6 ounces unsalted butter, cold
3 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, melted and cooled
1/2 cup buttermilk, plus 3 tablespoons, cold and shaken
1 large egg

1. Preheat oven to 450F.

2. In a large bowl, mix together the all-purpose flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using a box grater, grate the butter into the flour mixture. Transfer the bowl to the freezer for 10 minutes. When it’s done chilling, break up the butter with your hands until it resembles small peas in the flour mixture.

3. In a blender, add the melted chocolate, buttermilk and egg. Pulse until thoroughly combined, and mixture resembles chocolate milk.

4. Add the buttermilk mixture, all at once, to the flour mixture. Mix until barely combined, lightly kneading the dough in the bowl. Dough will be sticky–that’s okay. Sprinkle your kitchen counter with flour and dump the dough onto it. Knead a few times to bring it all together (4 to 5 times). Press or gently roll the dough into a 1-inch thickness. Cut out the biscuits using a biscuit cutter (I used a 4-inch cutter and got 6 biscuits). If you use a 3-inch cutter, you’ll end up with 8.) Recombine the scraps and get two more biscuits. Transfer them to a lined baking sheet.

5. If you think you’ve been moving a little slow (like I was because I was..ahem..taking pictures), stick them in the freezer for 2-3 minutes. This will get the bits of butter nice and cold again. After the biscuits are cold, brush the tops of with egg wash and bake in oven or 15-17 minutes, or until tall and slightly golden brown on top. Serve biscuits warm with macerated* strawberries and whipped cream.

*Tip: To mascerate strawberries, slice up desired amount and transfer to a small bowl. Add a tablespoon of white granulated sugar (per every 5-6 medium-sized strawberries you use), a teaspoon of lemon juice and let the mixture stand for 10-15 minutes.

Yields 6 (4-inch) biscuits

My lady doctor gave me strict instruction that I need to start taking vitamins. I’ve put this off for a really long time because I’m a gigantic baby and suck at taking pills. I do that melodramatic thing where I fill up my mouth with water and then stick the pills in my mouth and then swallow. Sometimes I do like a little gag reflex thing…and then realize there’s no one around to feel sorry for me. Womp womp.

Anyway, I heard through a friend-of-a-friend that Trader Joe’s is the place to get those adult edible vitamins, so I went and she was right. And they’re not just “edible,” they’re deliciously edible! You mean I can take my daily vitamins in form of a gummi bear? Even though it was “candy,” I still expected it to be sort of disgusting. But whoa, before I knew it I ate, like, half the bottle. I’m sure this is awful, right? The bottle said take one…I took 10? Maybe 15?

I’m not sure what’s worse: too little vitamins, or too many. And I also did this on an empty stomach, but it was perfect timing because the batch of the carnitas that was on the stovetop was done, so I assembled two of these things and I felt a little better. Overly vitamized…but better!

I frequent Mexican taco trucks generally late at night. And mulitas with al pastor or carnitas are always my go-to. Mulitas are like quesadilla sandwiches…with meat on the inside. Hello! That’s cool!

This carnitas recipe is suuuuper simple, and only takes about 3 hours of braising on the stove-top. Not too long at all. If you wanted, you could even stick it in a slow-cooker while you head to work. I bet that’d work lovely.

You’re gonna start by cubing up about a pound and a half of pork shoulder/butt. And then you’re going to salt it liberally.

This recipe serves two people with a bit of leftovers, but if you need to cook for more people, it’s pretty simple to double.

You’re going to cook the pork with all of the things you see below: orange juice, lime juice, white onion, garlic, ground cumin and chile powder.

So…I don’t have pictures of the remaining steps, but basically you’re going to sear the pork cubes until they’re nice and crispy and lightly golden brown. Then you’re going to sauté some stuff a.k.a. the onions and spices together.

Then the pork goes back in the skillet, covered with some water and kept at a simmer for about 3 hours.

You’ll know when it’s ready because you’ll be able to cut it with a fork. That’s the money sign.

Mulita time!!

1. Tortilla, cheese, in a pan. Place a lid on top until it melts.

2. Then place a tablespoon or so of carnitas.

3. Top with another tortilla and gently flip.

4. I like mine topped with warm refried beans, this little cilantro/onion mixture, crumbled queso fresco, avocado and a dollop of sour cream.

Annnnnd, if you want to be really lazy and don’t want to make your carnitas, Trader Joe’s has pre-made carnitas that aren’t terrible. Are they as good as the ones pictured? No, but they take two minutes to buy. AND you can get some gummi bear vitamins while you’re there.

Mulitas

Print this recipe!

Carnitas:
1 1/2 pounds pork shoulder/butt, cut into 1″ x 1″ cubes
Salt
Vegetable oil
1 white onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chile powder
1 orange
1 lime, divided

Mulitas:
Handful of cilantro, chopped
1 jalapeño pepper, diced
4 small corn or flour tortillas
1/2 cup Monterey jack, shredded
1 (15-ounce) can of refried beans (you’ll have leftovers)
1 ounce queso fresco, crumbled
1/2 avocado, sliced
2 teaspoons sour cream

1. Lay the cubes of pork in one layer and sprinkle, on both sides, with salt, liberally. (I used about 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt.) Heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a cast iron skillet (or dutch oven) over high heat. When oil glistens, it’s ready; using tongs, add cubes of pork, in one layer, and sear on both sides for 30 seconds to a minute, or until golden brown. Depending on the size of your skillet (or pot) you may need to do this in two batches. Remove pork and set aside.

2. Bring heat down to medium and add 1/2 of the diced onion; cook until translucent, about 3-5 minutes. Next, add the garlic cloves, ground cumin, chile powder, and toss. Cook for about 30 seconds more. Add the pork back to the skillet and squeeze the orange and half of the lime over the meat. Pour enough water to slightly cover the meat and turn the heat to medium-high until it reaches a simmer. Once it’s at a simmer, bring heat down to medium-low. Cook, uncovered, for 3 hours, adding water frequently. You’ll the meat is ready when it’s easily shreddable.

3. To assemble mulitas, get all of your accessories ready, which includes warming the refried beans in the microwave or over the stovetop. In a medium skillet, placed over medium-low heat, add 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil. When warm, add one corn tortilla and top with a handful of shredded cheese. Cover the skillet with a top and cook until cheese is melted, about 1 minute. Place a few tablespoons of shredded carnitas on top of cheese and cap with a tortilla. Cook for an additional minute more until top tortilla becomes warm. Remove and transfer to plate.

4. Top with a tablespoon of refried beans, spreading it out evenly. Sprinkle onion and cilantro mixture on top, along with crumbled queso fresco. Top with a few slices of avocado and dollop of sour cream. Serve immediately with cold beer or margaritas. YES!

Yields Mulitas and Carnitas for 2

I’m in the mood to talk about ice cream…so we’re gonna do that.

Ice cream flavors. So many to choose from! They can say so much about a person, am I right? As a kid, what was your go-to flavor? Let’s dicusss…

Popular flavor #1: Bubble gum ice cream. That was usually the girly-girl. I always considered it a stupid flavor. Very ill-conceived. The gum gets all hard and unchewable, too sweet and a lil’ too pink. If Barbie was a real life living girl, I’d bet she’d order bubble gum ice cream.

Popular flavor #2 & #3: Vanilla and chocolate. Straight, narrow and safe. But you know, sometimes you want something delicious and basic. Almost like a great pair of fitted jeans or the perfect white tee. Basics are cool. I feel like the straight-A student went with vanilla and chocolate. (I’m totally putting people in boxes right now!! Ice cream boxes!!)

Popular flavor #4 & #5: Mint chocolate chip and cookies n’ cream. These two flavors are totally interchangeable. They’re practicality the same thing: vanilla ice cream with oreos or refreshing chocolate. All of my friends ordered these flavors. Solid choices. For the record, I respect these ice cream flavors.

Weirdo flavor #1: Pistachio. Ahhhh yea! That was allll me. I was the strange 6 year old asking for pistachio. I think some adults liked to think I had fancy taste, but really it was just the light green color that I loved so much. And, I liked rebellious ice cream flavors. Pistachio ice cream is like the ugly mutt of the ice cream world.

It’s weirdly cold in LA. After a weekend in the desert, and honestly enjoying 97 degree temperatures, I’m now living in weirdly cloudy, dreary, sorta cold LA weather.

I was in the mood to bake something up that’s perfect for those in between hot and cold days, that are so common in these spring months. This quick bread comes together…(wait for it!) quickly!

There’s a lovely honey flavor with the perfect hint of cardamom. The pistachios work with the cornmeal to add an awesome texture throughout.

This bread is gorgeous with a cup of tea or a cup of coffee. Or maybe even some ice cream?!?!

I dunno. Life is short, eat ice cream with everything.

Cardamon Pistachio Quick Bread

Print this recipe!

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons cardomom
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/4 cups buttermilk, shaken
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1/2 cup honey
2 large eggs
1/4 pistachios, chopped, plus 1 small handful for topping
Demarara sugar (for topping) (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray 9 x 5 metal loaf pan with nonstick spray. In a large bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, cornmeal, sugar, sugar and baking powder.

2. In a large measuring cup, or medium bowl, add buttermilk, melted butter, honey and eggs; whisk until thoroughly combined.

3. Fold in chopped pistachios. Transfer batter into prepared pan. Top with a handful of chopped pistachios and about a tablespoon of demarara sugar.

4. Transfer to oven and bake until about 1 hour and 5 minutes, and until top is golden brown and a skewer comes out clean. If the bread begins to brown too quickly, you can tent it with a piece of foil. Check on the bread at the 45 minute mark just to see what the deal is. Cool in the rack for about 15 minutes and then transfer to a rack to cool. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Bread will be moist for 1-2 days.

Recipe adapted from Epicurious

This avocado hummus is delicious. And I know I say that a lot, but I really rilly like this one. It’s a good one!

In other related news, why are avocados so expensive? I get that they’re delicious, buttery, fatty (in a healthy way!), pretty, and again, delicious.

No but really…

I like to consider myself a pretty good “ripe” fruit picker, but avocados sort of make me nervous, because sometimes they’re perfectly ripe, yet their exterior is still a little green. This is risky business. Because, I mean, what if I cut into it, thinking it’s ripe and then…it’s not. That’s a whole $2-$3 in the garbage. Stressful!

I sometimes put my pride on the side and I enlist the produce guy to help. He’s always knows what’s up. He picked the ones you see below. They were sort of unripe looking on the outside, slightly soft and totally perfect on the outside. He’s good!

This avocado hummus is exactly what it sounds like: avocado and hummus totally making out, getting married and making a child.

I went the traditional hummus route. There’s a good dose of garlic in this, lemon flavor for days and an awesome tahini flavor. The avocado flavor is subtle, yet totally apparent.

Can we also just discuss how delicious tahini is?! I want to put it in everything right now.

Avocado Hummus

Print this recipe!

2 garlic cloves
1 (15-ounce) can of garbanzo beans
1 lemon, zest and juice
2 tablespoon tahini
2 avocados
Salt
Olive Oil
Paprika

1. Place garlic cloves, garbanzo beans, lemon zest and juice from the lemon and tahini in a food processor. Blend until smooth. Salt to taste.

2. Add two avocados and blend just until smooth. Salt to taste once more. Transfer to a bowl, pour a few tablespoons of olive oil on top, and sprinkle a few dashes of paprika. Serve with whatever you like, whether it be pita chips, warm slices of pita or crackers.

I’ve hated eggplant since infancy, I swear, so the fact that you’re seeing little baked/fried matchsticks of eggplant right now is just crazy business. But here we are…just looking at eggplant.

The shift happened a few weeks ago when I went to my favorite vegan restaurant, which I sort of hate. I like/hate this restaurant. I sort of hate it and I sort of love it. This place is like no other restaurant I’ve ever been to. Each dish is an affirmation. Hold the phone, let me explain.

Every dish’s name is an affirmation. A vegan BLT isn’t just a vegan BLT, it’s actually a “I Am Humble.” So, in order for you to place your order you have to look at the server and say, “I would like the ‘I AM GORGEOUS’” and then the server looks at you and says, “YOU are gorgeous.”

This is when I vom. After you’re done ordering they tell you the philosophical question of the day. This is when (internally, of course!) I’m all like, Dude, listen, can you just give me my damn cashew cream, raw cold-ass vegan enchilada thing without talking to me about my inner spirituality and positivity or whatever, because seriously now I AM ANNOYED.

Okay so, why do I go back? Because it’s the best vegan food I’ve ever had. Ever! They served me an eggplant sandwich, which I ordered out of pure curiosity, knowing very well I hated the stuff. I figured if anybody could prepare an inherently gross vegetable in an awesome manner it was them. And I was soooo right.

Eggplant gets a bad rap. Mainly because eggplants can be bitter and slimy.

The eggplant I had at my love/hate restaurant was neither.

After a ton of eggplant research I found some solutions to both problems.

Slimy problem: People cook eggplant for too long. It should be cooked in the oven for about 20 minutes, max. It should be soft, but not, like, mushy and slimy.

Bitter problem: Salting the eggplant before and letting it stand for 25 minutes cures this. Salting the eggplant not only takes out the water and makes the eggplant firmer, but the salt actually suppresses the bitterness. (Here’s the NY Times bit I found that explains it further. Pretty interesting.)

Also, when buying eggplant, try to go for recently picked, young eggplants. Look for ones with fresh looking green tops and that are firm to the touch.

I prepared these eggplant two ways: fried and baked. Obviously the fried tasted better. I mean, that’s a no-brainer, but I know that most of the human population hates frying things, so I figured I’d try it both ways.

I’ve included directions for both below. Disclaimer: The baked fries won’t be totally golden brown. Most of the ones pictured are fried. There’s a paler one mixed in there–that’s the baked one. But no biggie! You choose. You’re the boss!

And since every type of fry needs a dipping sauce, I whipped up this super-quick and easy sorta spicy tomato sauce. I did this all while a batch of fries were baking.

Like vegetable fries? Me too. Here’s a few more that are on this blog:

Zucchini Fries

Portobello Fries

Polenta Fries (not really a vegetable, but you know, whatever.)

Baked Green Bean Fries

Avocado Fries

Cornmeal Crusted Eggplant Fries

Print this recipe!

Eggplant Fries:
1 eggplant, peeled and cut into matchsticks
1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
1/2 cup cornmeal
3/4 cup Italian breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
2 large eggs, beaten

Quick Tomato Sauce:
1/4 yellow onion, finely diced
2 garlic cloves
1 (14-ounce) can of diced tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
Salt

To bake the fries:

1. Lay eggplant matchsticks, in a single layer, on a baking sheet lined with paper towels. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of salt and let stand for 25 minutes. At the 25-minute mark, pat dry with paper towels.

2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a medium bowl, combine remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt, cornmeal, breadcrumbs, crushed red pepper, garlic powder and oregano. Crack two eggs in a small bowl and beat.

3. One by one, dip the eggplant sticks in the beaten eggs, and transfer to the bread crumb mixture, being sure to coat the eggplant thoroughly. Place the bread crumb covered eggplant on a baking sheet and bake for 20-23 minutes, flipping them at the 15 minute mark.

To fry:

1. In a cast iron skillet, add enough vegetable oil so it reaches about 3 inches up the sides. Heat oil to 350 degrees F. Gently transfer bread crumb coated eggplant to the hot oil and fry on each side for about a minute, or until golden brown. Using tongs, take them out of the oil and place on a bed of paper towels to drain.

For tomato sauce:

1. To make the tomato sauce, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a skillet. Throw in diced onion, and cook until translucent, about 7 minutes. Place garlic atop onions and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the can of diced tomato and stir. Add the crushed red pepper and oregano. Next, salt to taste. Bring tomato mixture to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes, until mixture is reduced. Carefully add to a blender and blend until sorta smooth, about 30 seconds. Serve with eggplant fries.