Spring Salad

Tomorrow is April 1 and I'm hoping that the nice weather I've been experiencing is no April Fool's Day joke. I've been loving the sunny, flower filled, gorgeous days so much that I've already started having a few summer salad dinners. And, boy, so those dinners make me happy!

I know I'm in one of the few cities in Canada that can say spring has arrived, but I think that one bite of this spring salad will begin to convince even those on the frozen east coast that spring is on it's way.

Raw Cashew Love

As you might reminder, I told myself that I'd try a new food each month of 2014. I've done well so far and don't plan on giving up. So this month's new food is raw cashews.

Raw cashews are something you wouldn't want to snack on because they aren't roasted and salted into the cashews we typically know and love. But raw cashews are truly perfect for making a cheese-less cheese sauce and that's something worth talking about.

I learned about raw cashews and vegan cheese sauce from the Oh She Glows blog and cookbook and knew that I had to give them a try. I love cheese but scrubbing a pot from a cheese sauce is tiring and there's only so much cheese a girl should eat.

My recipe is inspired by Oh She Glow's Smoky Butternut Squash Sauce with Pasta and Greens, but I think the "secret" ingredients I added takes the sauce up another few notches. But you should try both recipes to know for sure.

Crispy Chick Peas - Take Two!

From the very first moment I tried a crispy chick pea, I knew I was hooked. They remind me of chips but they're so much healthier than a chips and what could be better than that?

I've shared my original recipe for Crispy Spiced Chickpeas and I still think they're delicious, but my new Sweet and Smokey Crispy Chickpeas are worth doing a cook off against the original. I think they might be even better than my original recipe!

Grilled Cheese Goodness

A good grilled cheese sandwich is crisp on the outside and gooey and melty on the inside. The bread and the cheese can be switched around, but never do I want to bite into a limp breaded sandwich filled with hard cheese.

But crisp bread and melted cheese is not where a good grilled sandwich ends. No, good grilled cheese sandwiches need more than that. They need something special added in them. Maybe it's spoonful of fig jam smeared into the bread before Brie is sandwiches in. Or maybe it's a little pesto or apple added for a burst of flavour. Whatever it is, just make sure you put enough in the sandwich so you can taste it.

I think the grilled cheese sandwich I'm sharing today is pretty spectacular. It's full of healthy spinach and tart little artichokes. And it's high time a spinach artichoke dip met a grilled cheese sandwich, don't you think?

Veggie Cannelloni

I am truly addicted to pasta and cheese. But sometimes I try to make my meals a little healthier than just pasta covered cheese because we all could use a little more veggie love in our lives. I've subbed out pasta for cauliflower and made a delicious new version of Cauliflower Mac and Cheese and I knew I could make a cannelloni just as tasty as the real thing without using pasta too. 

Here's my recipe for Eggplant Cannelloni. They're stuffed with ricotta, black beans, olives, and drenched in a tomato sauce. 

Luck of the Irish

It's March 16 today and I bet a few of you are planning on celebrating St. Patrick's Day today. I bet some of you are looking for green food to whip up, some of you are looking for an easy and yummy meal to soak up some of the Irish brews you'll be enjoying later, and maybe a few of you are looking for a recipe you can make for a date. Whatever the case, I think that today's dish will bring the luck of the Irish to you.

Today's dish is green, easy to make and filling, and fanciest enough looking to be perfect to make for someone special. It's only fancy looking though, so don't get worried. It's not really fancy...

Read on for my take on a Veggie and Shrimp Barley Risotto. It's inspired by one from Food Network Canada. 

Twice Baked Mexican Sweet Potatoes

Week nights and a sink of pots and pans don't mix at my house. I'd much rather make something quick, easy, and as sink free as possible. Today's post is one of my new ideas that combines these concepts to make a tasty and fun week night dinner. 

I love to eat these Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes on their own for dinner but you might want to serve them with a salad or a piece of chicken if you'd like something a little more hearty. But whatever you serve them with, just serve them. Your taste buds will thank you!