peanut butter granola
Let’s face it. Granola like this is basically crumbled up cookies under the guise of being healthfood and thus it is glorious in its deception and deliciousness. I whipped this up late Sunday night when a craving for peanut butter/oatmeal cookies hit me and I wanted to change things up. I threw in a couple handfuls of raisins and half a can of mixed nuts I had sitting in the freezer and voila! Tasty, terrible-for-you granola! Enjoy!
tomatillo enchilada casserole
Tomatillos are one of those fascinating and underused ingredients in your everyday kitchen. I can understand why. They have an odd papery husk, they’re sticky as all get out, and are almost inedibly sour when served raw (confession: for many years I believed that raw tomatillos were poisonous – don’t ask me where or how I gleaned this “knowledge”.) They’re just, well, weird. But also incredibly delicious, tart, and a staple in Mexican cuisine.
I baked these up on a Sunday afternoon and have been eating them off and on all week. Like any good casserole it reheats beautifully (even with the sour cream on top) and the whole thing comes together pretty easily. The flavor is tangy and refreshing, but still hearty with the chicken and tortillas melting together in one awesome layer. It’s a light casserole, perfect for an 80 degree fall day.
kale chips
Salty and crunchy. The two characteristics I look for in my favorite kind of after-work snack. Usually the first thing I do when I get home from work is unload my crap, wash off my make-up, and open a bag of chips to munch on while I unwind. Although I’ve been good lately snacking on Popchips or other healthy alternatives, I decided to step up my game and get even healthier with these tasty treats.
Kale chips are pretty hot right now considering they have practically no calories, are incredibly crunchy, and have a pretty awesome flavor profile. You can make them as salty or spicy as you like, and they’re perfect for satisfying that salty-crunchy tooth. I’m trying to get back on the super healthy eating wagon since I started doing morning work-outs again and can actually control what I eat nowadays. Snacks like this really help, and I hope they do the same for you.
sweet potato fries + creamy dill dip
One of my favorite snacks, side dishes, or hey even a dinner on a weeknight. I’ve got all sorts of free produce to take home every day from the studio (especially fresh herbs), so I like putting them to good use. The fries are sweet and crunchy, the dip is refreshing and can be used for anything – crudite, chips, rye bread, etc. It’s simple and delicious.
roasted applesauce
Do you smell it? Do you feel it? The refreshing, crisp wind. The shutting down of the AC. The first morning where you can see your breath walking to your car.
Autumn is finally arriving after a brutal summer here and with it brings all the glorious weather changes along with some great personal changes for me as well.
I got a new job at a new company (well, old company I used to intern for) as a full-time food stylist last week and things are going very well. I’m still in the same city (thank the heavens a move wasn’t necessary) and now get to spend all my time either in the studio or prepping in the kitchen, which is fantastic for my spirit (but definitely hard on my feet!) I feel so revived and ready for this next step in my life, and combined with this glorious weather, my zest for cooking has returned tenfold.
A friend of mine texted me the other day asking if I knew how to make applesauce. I rattled off a recipe to him and then seeing honeycrisp apples had arrived the next day was instantly inspired. Fall is the time when I feel most alive and excited about life, and it’s food like this that makes me love the season more than any other.
