From my kitchen to yours, the best recipes highlighting food and life in an ocean paradise.
Looking for a quick meal that is warm and comforting too? Look no further than this roasted fresh tomato Parmesan pasta! Even though right now, Florida is in the middle of a cold front (YAY! Cold front = waves), it is the growing season here. The rest of the country is growing cabbage and kale...
It's 2018---time to take care of ourselves! These raw brownies are a great way to start. They are vegan, gluten free, and refined sugar free! Are you just here for the recipes? Well, this is a good one. But before we get to it....... Happy New Year! Hope you had a great time celebrating with...
If you are tempted by the soft sugar cookies at the grocery store, try this recipe instead. This copy-cat recipe of the Lofthouse Sugar Cookies tastes even better than the ones at the store. I hardly ever buy pre-made sweets at the store but I get tempted every holiday season when the stores start rolling...
Trying to redeem my earlier blogging skills with these mini Momofuku Crack Pies---oatmeal and buttery goodness in a bite sized dessert. Seven years ago, I attempted to make the famous Momofuku Crack Pie. I was so proud of my creation that I wanted to share it with the world. I delivered some to neighbors, wrote...
Plain old pinhead oatmeal cookies don't get the credit they deserve. They are passed over for their better looking cousin, chocolate chip and their brother, oatmeal raisin gets all the attention. I think this needs to change. Why don't we look past all the glitter and glitz that these other cookies possess and look at...
Every year, just after Thanksgiving, we look forward to cranberry bliss bars showing up at Starbucks. They are one of Aaron's favorites, loaded with cranberries, white chocolate, candied ginger, and cream cheese frosting. When I first started my previous blog (in 2009), I tried to make these as one of my first recipes. I encourage...
These giant oatmeal chocolate chip cookies are a great way to get your holiday baking started. I bake them year-round but make extra batches during the holidays. Happy National Cookie Day! Maybe it should be National Cookie Month---it seems that is all we are making, eating and thinking about over here. These giant oatmeal chocolate chip...
Every year, I make the kids a pretty elaborate advent calendar which includes all kinds of holiday treats and activities. A few years ago, I started making a special advent calendar for Aaron---a beer advent calendar. Starting on December 1, he gets to open one beer, per day, specially picked out and labeled for that...
One of my favorite restaurants, The True Food Kitchen, has an amazing bowl on their menu that is filled with miso-glazed sweet potatoes among other goodness. I knew I had to re-create these at home because the restaurant is over two hours from my house. I have tested this recipe now four times and have...
You may have noticed that other food blogs have been all about Thanksgiving for a month or more and over here I haven't posted very many Thanksgiving related dishes ( I did post Grandma's Macaroni and Cheese , wasabi mashed potatoes, and instant pot apple cider . Plus, I have a good sweet potato recipe coming up). ...
Wasabi mashed potatoes are on our Thanksgiving table every year. I find that regular mashed potatoes are just slightly boring (especially without gravy) and I really like the extra spice and depth of flavor that comes from adding a bit of wasabi. I once brought these to an office party and they were thoroughly enjoyed...
This recipe is hearty comfort food at its finest. Grandma Jennie makes this for us every time we visit her in Vermont or when they come to visit us. We know if we are seeing the grandparents, we will be eating this mac and cheese. We were in Vermont a few months ago, during the...
How was your Halloween? Are you reeling in the candy? We aren't. Unfortunately, the kids weren't too excited about dressing up and going trick or treating this year but I finally managed to get them to dig through the Halloween bin and go out. Aaron and I dressed up more than the kids. I used...
I had such high hopes for this Halloween. I was planning to make multiple festive cookies, a savory dish, and a few fun cocktails. I had big decorations planned and a great and easy costume. But, I am not sure what happened and now Halloween is tomorrow and the only fun treat I made was...
I am obsessed with cashew butter and have been using it in lots of recipes lately. Did you see my granola with cashew butter and chocolate? It is so good! I made a big batch of cashew butter to make the granola but then had cashew butter leftover. I thought since the holidays are fast...
I am not currently a full time vegan but tend to make lots of vegan recipes. I like every recipe that I test and put on this site but these five layer cookie bars, I LOVE. I have been so excited to share this recipe with you because these are AMAZING. I mean, just...
Sawyer is obsessed with this particular chocolate and cashew butter granola and eats it multiple times a day. We started by buying it from the store but it is just getting too expensive. Every couple of days, Sawyer announces that he needs more granola and we head back to load up the cart. In an effort...
I was first introduced to cashew butter a few months ago at a new restaurant in downtown Sarasota called Lila's. We ended up there because 1) it was new, 2) I love to support new businesses and 3) it had all kinds of options for various food restrictions. One of my most memorable parts of...
I bought a special pan just to make doughnuts at home and I finally used it to make these baked pumpkin doughnuts (or donuts!?). This was a spontaneous creation that was triggered when I was looking through my cabinets for my Halloween placemats and I found my doughnut pan. In the same moment, I...
It is really hard for me to say if I prefer this version of chocolate chip pumpkin bread or the other version I made last week. I made both on the same day and one loaf was finished off a lot faster than the other. Any guesses which one that might be? I used the...
It is definitely not cold enough around here for maple apple cider. If you have an Instant Pot, this maple apple cider can be made in 30 minutes without heating up your house and still making it smell amazing. In the recipe, I give notes to make it in a slow cooker as well. If...
For those of you in more Northern climates, this time of year likely means big, comfy sweaters, boots, soups, and sitting by the fire. In Florida, this time of year still means slippers (flip-flops), shorts and beach days. Right now, we are celebrating because the temperature didn't get much above 80 degrees yesterday. We can...
Happy Fall! I am so excited to jump into fall with all of the holidays and baking. I am still trying to stay healthy though and not go overboard with lots of treats. I think everyone has their favorite Starbucks item that they wait patiently for each year. Aaron loves the cranberry bliss bars that...
When I was doing the Whole 30, Paleo Insta-Pot chili was on the menu at least once a week. I would make a big pot and eat if for lunch and dinner on multiple days because it was so filling and easy. Honestly, I am kind of scared of the insta-pot so I count on...
Last week, I needed this chia pudding with mango and coconut in order to start to feel a bit more normal in our house, my body and in our life. After our two weeks dealing with our Hurricane Irma drama, I came home completely wiped out and overwhelmed. We didn't sustain much damage other than...
It has been raining all weekend. Not just little Seattle sprinkles but full on downpour--our yard is flooded, the dogs don't want to go outside, and neither do I. I just want to sit inside and eat toast---specifically toast smeared with herbed goat cheese and topped with fresh tomatoes. I was actually really sad...
When I was about 16, I started hanging in the punk and indie music scene in Olympia, Washington. If you didn't know, the Olympia punk scene in the 1990's was really exciting and a very special time. There were amazing bands coming out of our little town, music festivals and touring bands passing through all the time....
Every morning in Hawaii, Auntie Cathy left a pan of butter mochi out on the counter for us to enjoy. Some days, it was cocoa mochi, some days it was blueberry mochi but my favorite was the regular butter mochi. If you haven't tried butter mochi, you are missing out. Traditional mochi is a Japanese...
This recipe for nut butter banana muffins makes me think of fall. Thanks to modern shipping we have bananas in our kitchen year-round, but it isn't until the fall that I start thinking of making muffins. I think it has something to do with school starting and wanting to have quick and easy to grab snacks for...
I am not sure where the inspiration for these honey, almond and cheese sandwiches came from. It may have been a recipe I saw years ago and filed away to the back of my mind or it may have been a pure creative genius. Not sure. But, for some reason I decided that I needed...
My boyfriend in college introduced me to these lettuce and avocado sandwiches. And, though they might not sound like much, believe me, they are the best. Or maybe, I just love them because of the nostalgia behind them. Not sure. I went to college in Bellingham, Washington and after studying would meet up with my...
Hawaii is still on my mind after spending a few weeks there. I can't decide if I am ready to move back although I am definitely considering it. We had such a great time and I keep having to remind myself that it could have been because we were on vacation. I know there is something...
Need an extra kick of energy? This high protein super energy smoothie is a great way to kick start your day or give you a bit of energy later in the day. Making great smoothies doesn't have to be hard. Save yourself time and money by making these high protein super energy smoothies at home....
I'm not normally a margarita fan. I don't like frozen drinks, fancy glasses or sugary sweet cocktails. I also have developed a bit of strong feelings against tequila while working as a bartender and cocktail waitress for many years. I remembered delivering trays full of Cuervo shots, with lime and salt and watching in...
Paleo Carrot Cake Recipe to Celebrate Easter and Spring Easter is kind of a weird holiday for me because I don't really remember Easter holiday traditions growing up. I remember hiding eggs, destroying hard-boiled eggs by throwing them at trees, and hanging out at a park along the river in Centralia, Washington. I don't remember...
Lately I have been getting lots of inspiration from restaurants that we end up at. This is no exception. A few weeks ago we went over to Cocoa Beach for a quick visit. We stayed surfed at the Beach House Guesthouse, which is one of my favorite places. We surfed right out in front...
When I first moved to Hawaii, I was introduced to Vietnamese cuisine, specifically banh mi sandwiches. The Vietnamese tofu banh mi sandwiches quickly became my favorite; they were vegetarian and a perfect combination of unique flavors. Although the banh mi can be made with a combination of meats, the vegetarian option is so good. Tofu Banh Mi is not just for vegetarians. I...
Happy February! I have been so sick lately and haven't wanted to look at this blog or even try to cook. I didn't make a cake for Nova's birthday until yesterday (two days late) and our Super Bowl snacks were bought from Trader Joe's and just heated up. What kind of food blogger heats...
Spicy Tuna Poke uses fresh tuna and a few common ingredients for an amazing flavor. This is all we eat when we are in Hawaii and now we can make it home. This recipe made me feel really good because as Aaron was eating it he said, "I think it is just amazing that we...
There is excitement in the air over here because the surf report is showing surf this weekend. Surf on the Gulf Coast is rare because the Gulf is pretty protected but when the surf does hit, the surfers tend to come out in droves. The waves in the winter usually correspond with cold fronts moving...
Brown rice pancakes were my dad's invention. He went through a phase where he added brown rice to everything--smoothies, cookies, bread and even pancakes. His other recipes were just experiments but the recipe for brown rice pancakes stuck. My dad's theory is that pancakes are inherently bad for you but with the addition of the...
Hawaiian style poke is what we miss most about living in Hawaii. While, poke restaurants are popping up more and more on the mainland, the poke just isn't the same as the traditional poke that you can find in Hawaii. Poke is basically a salad of raw fish, onions, and other ingredients tossed with a sauce made of...