Marinera Pasta Sauce ~ page 23

This is still on my stove right now simmering away...so my house smells like an Italian restaurant! The only thing I might change is to cut the black peper down. The cookbook calls for 1 teaspoon, I think that might be a typo...1/2 teaspoon would be better. Unless you like your sauce with a kick, then just leave it.

Below is a picture to show how chunky I leave my veggies since they go into a food processor.

Then saute' them up before adding everything else..I process mine pretty fine so the kids and the husband don't detect the carrots!

I buy the cheapest wine to cook with...I know on Food Network they always say to buy nicer stuff since you are concentrating the flavors, but I thought this $2.98 bottle from Wal-mart fit into my budget very nicely! :) It adds a nice depth of flavor.

I don't have a picture of the sauce on pasta because first of all, it is still simmering, but I am about to cool it and stick it in the freezer for an emergency meal after the baby is born. (just a couple weeks to go!!)

Adam needs all the help he can get when it comes to cooking dinner for me! :) This way all he has to do is thaw it out and boil pasta and a healthy dinner is ready! --Carissa

Honey-Mustard Dressing ~ page 30

One of the things I like about making my own salad dressing is not having ALL those bottles of "choices" cluttering up my fridge. This is probably better tasting than any store bought honey-mustard salad dressing.

Here are the brands I like to use for the best flavor: Colavita olive oil, my local honey (meaning local wherever you live because your local honey is good for your local allergies!), and organic apple cider vinegar, (because I think this particular vinegar has amazing flavor).

Just blend all the ingredients together with a whisk, then finely chop up your onion and add to the mix.

Now your fresh honey-mustard dressing is ready for your fresh salad. My husband, David, absolutely loves this salad dressing.

Hummus and Pimento Cheese gone wild...

I found a new spice that I am trying out in everything that seems reasonable...well, actually it is not a new spice, I just came across some intriguing information about Turmeric, and decided I wanted to use more of it. Turmeric basically cures whatever ails you ("they" say). From cancer, to inflammation, to acne...I am willing to give it a try, since I like turmeric anyway. So I put 1/2 teaspoon turmeric in our Hummus recipe and got brave enough to take it to a church homegroup event. You can see it altered the color a good bit--kind of looks like guacomole, but it is not! It was very well liked, however, I was questioned about the color! But several said it was the best hummus they had ever had.

You can't beat how easy this is to make--throw it all in the food processor, pulse till smooth, and you have hummus! Carissa often substitutes peanut butter for the tahini called for in this hummus, and she says that tastes great. I keep the tahini on hand though, so I use that, and like the taste a lot.

Done! Makes a lot and last a long time in the fridge. Now for my next exploits with turmeric...

The pimento cheese spread on page 18 took on amazing color with the addition of turmeric! David and I love the taste so much in this spread, that I think I will always use this spice when I make pimento cheese.
If you want to read more about turmeric, here is a site I found interesting--it has some pros and cons of the science behind the claims--but I still say it can't hurt to try it out. It is a tasty experiment.
http://www.healthdiaries.com/eatthis/20-health-benefits-of-turmeric.html

Homemade Mayonnaise ~ page 21

I get such a kick out of making mayonnaise--like I have beat the system or something! It just seems like such an impossibility that you can take ingredients as simple as a raw egg, oil, and lemon juice, and make this creamy, delicious spread.

Now I know there are those that will be afraid of the raw egg. But my research on google shows that the odds of contracting salmonella from eggs is fairly slim --1 in 30,000. I know that is just google...but still, it seems very low odds of getting sick, and you are not eating the whole egg in a serving of this mayonnaise anyway. So onto mayonnaise making...

The only trick to this recipe is to dribble the oil into the top hole of the lid of the blender (that has the egg and lemon juice in it), drop my drop, then dribble by dribble, until all the oil is slowly incorporated.

Very quickly the mixture begins to thicken into a silky mass.

This is what you pour out of the blender--isn't that amazing? I do like to stir in the optional Dijon mustard into the finished mixture.

I made salmon salad for lunch with this mayonnaise (from the leftover honey-pepper salmon from the other day...).

My next use will be the homemade pimento cheese spread with my mayonnaise. And then I might finish off the rest as a tartar sauce with fish next week...we will see. I do like to use this mayonnaise up within a week, so I make out my plans for it when I make up a batch.

Homemade Creamy Alfredo Sauce ~ page 20

This Alfredo sauce is so quick to make. I made this about an hour before dinner last night and let it just sit in the pan on the counter till the last minute. It kinda stiffened up, but once I put it back on the burner on low for 5 minutes, it was silky and creamy again. My 4 year old ate 4 helpings of the pasta, saying it was the best pasta I had made her!

I had it originally on the pasta, but Adam said he wanted it on his broccoli too! He said it was really good, made me want to try it, but he used the sauce all up on himself.

Chimichurri Sauce ~ page 29

I made this last weekend when Adam's parents came in town. I served it over a new recipe I was trying out on them...Grilled Garlic and Rosemary Flank Steak. Adam says it was the best thing I have ever made him! What a compliment huh? Anyway, if you want to try out this new flank steak recipe go to the "New Recipe" tab and print it off. Let me know what you think when you make it. I have only made it once, but I'm thinking it is gonna have to go into the next cookbook. Below is a picture of the sauce on the steak. I know I need a better camera...hopefully soon! --Carissa

Spinach and Walnut Pesto... Page 26

I just thought I'd share what I had for lunch today. I made the pesto on page 26, but to make it healthier I added in several spoonfuls of chickpeas. They were a great addition I thought, then again I love any pesto! It made it higher in fiber for one thing. Then I tossed it with my whole wheat pasta and topped with some sauteed zucchini and mushrooms, then a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese. It made for a very healthy vegetarian meal. My 4 and 2 year old weren't quite as excited about the sauteed veggies as I was, oh well, you win some and loose some.
--Carissa