This Zucchini Tomato Basil Salad with Lemon Basil Vinaigrette is a light and refreshing summertime salad and perfect when your garden is exploding with tomatoes, basil, and zucchini in the later summer months. Click HERE to save this recipe for Zucchini Tomato Basil Salad! Cold Zucchini Salad Recipe I get so excited about all the …

Take advantage of summer’s colorful and delicious produce and make this Roasted Tomato Crostini with Walnut Almond Pesto and Goat Cheese. Crostini is a great summer appetizer to serve while sitting out on the patio in the evening. This recipe for Roasted Tomato Crostini with Walnut Almond Pesto and Goat Cheese created in partnership with …

Fresh, summertime vegetables are tossed in pesto and balsamic and cooked with boneless pork chops in this makeover version of the classic foil dinners from childhood.  This recipe for Pesto Pork Chop and Summer Vegetable Foil Dinners was created in partnership with Smithfield. One of the summertime activities I loved doing when I was a kid was …

Chicken tenderloins are marinated in a summery basil kumquat vinaigrette and grilled, then served alongside grilled purple cauliflower steaks for a simple, yet inspired, summer dish. This recipe for Basil Kumquat Grilled Chicken Skewers with Cauliflower Steaks is created in partnership with Bertolli. Kevin and I have been hard at work with the finishing touches …

In these Basil Balsamic Strawberry Shortcake Parfaits, strawberries soaked in a sweet balsamic, basil syrup are layered with mini almond shortcakes, whipped cream, and sliced almonds for a delicious springtime dessert. Happy almost Mother’s Day! I hope all my mom readers out there have a wonderful Mother’s Day this year. For anyone who is planning …

We have had so much rain lately. Thursday was the last day of school and it doesn’t even feel like summer. I’m so over it. I am majorly missing the sunshine. I’m ready to go to the pool with the kids, go on afternoon bike rides now that school is out, and to wear shorts …

I have mixed emotions about backyard gardening. I love the idea of it and I want so very much to have a thriving garden. By the time Summer rolls around, however, I am forced to admit every year that the garden my mind conjured up in the Spring isn’t quite as easy as I thought …

Isn’t it funny how sometimes the simplest things taste the best? For example: I LOVE (read: am obsessed with) oatmeal.  Not fancy oatmeal either. Written by: Taylor Kiser of Food Faith Fitness A little bit of cinnamon, apples and just cook ‘er in the microwave, and I am one happy camper. I can eat it …

With only 2 weeks till we pull out of Albuquerque and head out to Colorado to settle in Boulder, I’ve got quite a lot on my plate. Please welcome the lovely Georgia Pellegrini, author of “Girl Hunter“, here for today’s guest post: Lemon Basil Ice Cream. Doesn’t this recipe sound perfect for the warmer months …

Can you guess what I love best about summer? I’ll give you a hint. It’s NOT the heat. I love all the fresh, delicious produce that is available and how easy it is to showcase those flavors. You don’t need a complicated recipe to show off ripe, red tomatoes and sweet garden basil. The previous …

I’m taking some time off to be with my family for a little while. The following recipe is written by Sandy of Reluctant Entertainer. Welcome, Sandy! Summertime entertaining seems to be a more “go with the flow” kind of entertaining at our place. Like 2 nights ago when we texted our friends (we’d been hanging …

This Turkey with Artichoke and Sun Dried Tomato is a great way to get creative with your sandwiches! So bread has kind of been the theme this week, huh? First I told you about how I learned that it wasn’t so hard to make Light Whole Wheat Baguette using Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a …

A simple and quick recipe for Vietnamese Noodle Soup with Beef. Contains snow peas, shiitake mushrooms, basil, cilantro, beef, noodles, & broth. Click HERE to save this recipe for Vietnamese Noodle Soup! Gluten-Free Soup Recipe Last week Logan didn’t have school Thursday or Friday because of Parent-Teacher Conferences. Thursday everyone was so bored and had …

Ricotta is mixed with a combination of primavera style vegetables, parmesan, and fresh herbs to create a tasty primavera stuffing to fill manicotti pasta. The manicotti primavera is then baked smothered in homemade marinara sauce and mozzarella cheese for a comforting meal. I came across this lovely looking vegetarian lasagna recipe recently. I had it on …

We had kindergarten orientation for Logan today. He has been so ready for summer to be over and get back to school (he loved preschool and loves to learn). I have been ready for him to go back to school (summer has been particularly trying this year). We got up all excited and anticipating a …

I love lasagna. But really, turning the oven on for that long in the summer just isn’t an option. Then I saw this recipe featured in Jaden’s TLC column and I couldn’t believe I hadn’t thought of the idea for a No-Bake Lasagna. DUH! The grilled vegetables just alone tossed with some feta would be …

A few weeks ago I bought zucchini for something, only when the time came to make dinner I couldn’t remember what that something was. I hadn’t written my menu down that week, and I hadn’t posted it on This Week For Dinner either. What to do?? Our dinner ended up sort of random, but I …

Focaccia bread is a wonderful side to any meal, but add your favorite toppings to this garlic focaccia and you have the best pizza I’ve tasted with this recipe for Pizza Caprese with Garlic Focaccia Crust! I have been struggling to make a pizza crust at home that I really, really love. I’ve seen a …

The week of Thanksgiving and a few days after we were far too busy doing things like hanging out with family, watching movies, eating Dad’s popcorn, playing in the leaves on Grandpa’s (my dad’s) property in Missouri, and riding “4th Wheelers,” as Logan calls them, for things such as food blogging. I think there might …

Here we go again, talking about our abundance of tomatoes. Are you sick of it yet? Don’t answer that. Would you be sick of all these tomatoes if they were yours? I’m not, because there are so many fresh tasting summer recipes to use them in before the season is over. Our latest tomato based …

I’ve never had a homemade pie crust turn out for me until now. I’m not sure what the problem was, but it could never get it transferred to the pie plate without falling apart. They also never baked up well for me, often cracking. I thought I was destined to buy pre-made pie crusts, but …

This is one of my all time favorite summer meals – I can’t believe I haven’t blogged about it yet. I’m not one to typically have lots of repeats for dinner. Eric and I both like variety and it’s fun for me to try new things, but I make this probably twice a month during …

Today I’m guest posting for Marie over at Make and Takes. In celebration of Earth Day, I’m talking all about gardening. For more pictures of spring in Sunny, New Mexico and our garden head over and visit Make and Takes. We’ve been super busy getting our garden in and ready for the spring and summer …

I hope Easter was as yummy and beautiful for all of you as ours was. Originally, I had planned to grill chicken, but the weather was rainy all weekend, finally clearing up just as we sat down to dinner. Instead, I roasted a whole chicken – my first time. I don’t know why I’ve never …