Category Archives: Appetizers

My Favorite Meal of the Week – Balsamic Onion Tart with Goat Cheese

Posted in Appetizers, Fall by

I used to not like onions. I know what you’re thinking, who was I? And I totally agree. Who doesn’t like onions? First of all, they’re on everything. Second of all, they’re so delicious!! The first time I consciously had caramelized onions (and also watched someone make them) was back when Dave and I first started dating, and it was actually an important day in our relationship. Perhaps this is where my new love for onions comes from! There are so many great things you can do with them, but often they are an add-on to a dish, and not the dish themselves. So when I saw this tart, I just had to try it. And oh my god, it is amazing. The combination of balsamic vinegar and onions is a truly good partnership.

This dish is the perfect appetizer because it’s surprisingly light! It’s also a great dish to make while making other things, because while you don’t actually have to do a ton of work, the onions do have to sit on the stove for an hour to an hour and half. So it’s perfect to do while you’re preparing something else.

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My Favorite Meal of the Week – Spicy Cucumber Gazpacho

Posted in Appetizers, Dinner, Gluten Free, Healthy, Lunch, Soup, Summer, Vegetarian by

At a dinner party this summer, our friends made an amazing spicy cucumber gazpacho that I wanted to recreate. I decided it would be the perfect thing to take to jazz in the sculpture garden on a humid Friday night. But as luck would have it, jazz got rained out. But we still really enjoyed this soup. We ate it for dinner with some garlic bread, but you could also serve it as a light summer appetizer.

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My Favorite Meal of the Week – Watermelon, Feta, and Mint Salad on a Stick

Posted in Appetizers, Dinner, Fruit, Gluten Free, Healthy, Summer, Vegetarian by

In the summers, I live for watermelon. When I can, I eat half a mini-watermelon every day. I literally cut it in half, and then sit with the half I’m going to eat, using a melon baller to scoop out bites (which immediately go into my mouth, no need to get a bowl dirty). It’s so refreshing and is the perfect palate cleanser after dinner. But sometimes, I need to class it up, and you know, serve it to people. Recently, I’ve started serving a watermelon, feta, and mint salad. The first time I did it as a traditional salad for a dinner party. The second time, I did mini ones on toothpicks for a birthday party. Both were delicious.

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My Favorite Meal of the Week – Sun-dried Tomato Pasta Salad

Posted in Appetizers, Dinner, Holiday, Pasta, Summer, Vegetarian by

Continuing from my post last Sunday, here is another great recipe for a Fourth of July BBQ! I used to think I didn’t like pasta salad, but turns out, I just don’t like the traditional mayonnaise based ones. But if you take out the mayonnaise, I’m a big pasta salad fan. A friend had made one last year for the Fourth that I loved, and after a lot of research I think I found a similar one.

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My Favorite Meal of the Week – Kale Salad and Cauliflower Salad

Posted in Appetizers, Dinner, Gluten Free, Healthy, Salads, Vegetarian by

First of all, I want to say how happy I am to be back blogging (if you don’t know where I was, read this). Spending a week at the beach doing very little besides reading, napping, and eating gave me lots of time to do some thinking and planning for the blog. So get excited for a summer full of yummy recipes.

Ok, now onto today’s post. After nine days of heavy meals, I returned to DC very excited to eat light, healthy summer fruits and vegetables. It also just so happened that for my first night back, I was having a friend over for dinner who was about to leave for a work trip to Afghanistan (and thus would be missing out on all the same fruits and veggies I was craving). So in honor of this, I put together the following spread:

Featured:

– Homemade Pesto (with basil from our garden) and Smashed Tomatoes served on Toasted French Bread

– A Lemon Kale Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing

– A Cauliflower and Garbanzo Bean Salad

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My Favorite Meal of the Week – Zucchini Fritters

Posted in Appetizers, Dinner, Healthy, Lunch, Vegetarian by

Growing up in California, I ate a lot of home grown squash, zucchini, and eggplant. In the summers, people with big gardens were basically giving these vegetables away because they had so many. So I thought I’d seen most of the ways to use these guys.

But last summer, I discovered a new great recipe to use any extra zucchinis – zucchini fritters. And I’ve started making them again almost every week.

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My Favorite Meal of the Week – Stuffed Peppers

Posted in Appetizers, Dinner, Gluten Free, Healthy by
This week I decided to finally try one of those dishes you always see pictures of, and think wow that’s so pretty, it must be really complicated.

Turns out, it’s not. I made stuffed peppers. And as long as you don’t mind a little mess, they were easy, pretty fast, and totally delicious (even the next day).