Sumptuous Summertime Suppers

It’s that time of year again –the weather is warming up, the garden is showing signs of life and two season’s worth of holidays and tummy warming comfort noms have more than taken their toll. Of course that means I must make my annual “cooking and eating healthier” vow. Oh so optimistic at this time of year; so filled with determination. Sadly, this determined optimism usually ends in utter failure. Darn my foodiness and genetic predisposition to gain weight. It’s a cruel joke really.

But this year I’m going to do it (Ok I’ve said this before, but this time I mean it…this time, not like the other dozen times when I’ve meant it. No really.)

See the problem for me isn’t junk food. It isn’t burgers or chips or Venti mocha double cream caramel fudge lattes. In fact it’s not even that I fill my pantry with prepackaged meals or other junk. The problem (aside from the fact that my job requires me to sit on my butt all day, paired with the fact that dinner generally doesn’t get served till about 7:30pm) is that I love to cook and bake, and that the recipes I tend to favor are more about taste and less about health (darn you condensed soups and your dinnertime versatility. 

So I’m going to make a real change this year. I’m going to source and develop some tasty yet healthy alternatives to my favorite dishes and desserts –not just to get healthier, but to add some new flavors and textures to my family’s dinnertime fare. Here’s hoping I can actually get it done this time.

Quick and Easy Meals: Bacon and Mushroom Mashed Potato Soup

Just the other day I had a huge bowl of leftover mashed potatoes in the fridge and no desire to make the usual grilled [insert meat here] with mashed potatoes and veg. So I scoured the web for left over mashed potato recipes. Of course, the majority of the recipes I came across involved ground meat in one way or another, which isn't a bad thing; it's just that I have a tendency to rely far too heavily on ground meat dishes. What can I say, it's cheap, easy and generally makes a nice meal, but one can feed their family only so many tacos, burgers, meat loaves, lasagnas, plates of spaghetti, bowls of chili, etc. Am I right?

Milkglass was made for Easter!

Far more show than tell, I simply had to offer a peek at the pretty that's been hatching throughout my house this Easter. Simply put, milkglass was absolutely made for Easter time. The texture and the milky white looks so fresh and inviting next to the pastel colors of the season. So here are a few pics:

Beautiful On the Breakfast Table

 

This Fenton pedestal bowl is by far my absolute favorite piece in my collection. I can't think of a nicer nest for this charming swirl of moss and pastel colored Easter eggs.