goat cheese fritters & balsamic marinated strawberry salad

recently I've been enjoying salads more than ever. 

during our trip to warrenton, virginia this past week

to celebrate my cousin lia's wedding to her husband john ,

I had a few amazing salads that really stood out as the best 

meals of our stay. 

at lia & john's wedding, a spring salad was served with 

blackberries & mandarin oranges with a fruit vinaigrette. 

I also had an amazing red leaf caesar salad with croquettes &

at the bridal luncheon a goat cheese fritter & beet salad.

needless to say I ate well during our trip. 

I had a goat cheese fritter salad once before the

lunch at claire's at the depot in warrenton, 

actually only a few days before when joey & I made them

to top one of our salads. 

since my first time cooking these , I have made them four 

more times- that's how much I love them! they are crispy & tangy- 

perfect for any salad .

[ bread cheese as you would with poultry or vegetables

with crispy panko bread crumbs ]

[ I marinated sliced strawberries in balsamic vinaigrette,

sugar, & water to soften & sweeten the berries -

refrigerating after & using the juice in our dressing ]

[ after frying in very hot oil for about a minute & a half

on each side ]

[ spring salad with a lemon honey vinaigrette 

topped with the goat cheese fritters, sliced strawberries,

& shaved almonds ]

[ yum ! ]

skinty minty cupcakes

I have been really into mint recently - I think

it started with the not - so - impulse buy

of mint chocolate chip ice cream , then the 

peppermint mocha coffees , then peppermint bark ...

then I decided enough was enough & I have to stop

the junk ! but who am I kidding , I am a choco-holic as I'm

sure you are well aware . 

I was trying to think of ways I can make something pepperminty

yet skinny at the same time , & I came up with the idea of these cupcakes .

by substituting oil with pumpkin mix ( something I have 

been doing for years - I swear you'll never know ! ) , my attempt

to skinnify my cupcakes was a success .

as for the peppermint , I placed a mini york peppermint patty

in between half of the cupcake batter , then made a fresh mint

whipped cream for on top . I love how the peppermint creates

an overwhelming chilly feeling in your mouth ... betcha can't eat just one

(especially after cooling overnight in the fridge - in fact joey & 

I each sneakily had one this morning & didn't tell each other ... shhh )

chinese chicken wings

[ teriyaki , soy sauce , sweet chili sauce , apricot preserves , 

ginger , & garlic ]

[ simmer above mixture in sauce pan & add 

green onions & honey ]

[ once cooking the wings through , place in sauce pot 

& allow to simmer covered for 30 minutes ]

[ broil the wings & flip halfway through for a crispy skin ]

[ serve with scallion pancakes - recipe to come ]

I have been wanting to make these chinese chicken wings

for years now . I used to make them for guests / friends

in high school , but lost my cookbook the recipe was in .

for some reason , the thought of preparing the wings 

without remembering the ingredients was intimidating .

two weeks ago , I made these chinese chicken wings 

for joey & we loved them so much we made them again !

by having the wings simmer in a sauce for 30

minutes , we allowed the meat to really moisten &

soak up the amazing honey / ginger / teriyaki glaze .

joey & I have really stepped up our food game  -

think prosciutto , apricot preserve , & gruyere on toasted 

truffle oil baguette and goat cheese , fig , & sopressata crostini .

I am excited to share the new , exciting things we have been

cooking up here in queens ! these chicken wings are just the start .

corn with queso fresco & chili powder

corn is underrated. in the hot summer , 

there is nothing better than coming home to my parents

making local corn on the cob from my family's farm .

the ability to eat local is something not a lot of people

are able to experience . being from the east end of long island

allows for fresh food of any sort- whether it's eggs ,

heirloom tomatoes, or fish .

I think it is so important to know where your food is coming

from , and supporting local farmers & people who are able

to bring such fresh, natural ingredients to the general public

is something I aim to embrace more & more in the near future .

on that note , the corn I used to make chipotle seasoned corn

topped with queso fresco ( a mexican crumbled cheese ) was 

in fact not local , & made me appreciate the fact that I can walk 

down the street in late august & buy vegetables, knowing where

they were grown ( if it's not corn I can get my veggies right in my 

backyard from my parent's garden- now that's the best ) .

[ stalks of corn I got from the grocery store in astoria ]

[ chipotle-mayo seasoning - low fat mayo, sour cream ,

paprika , cumin , cilantro , lime juice , & chili powder ]

[ after rubbing the chili powder mixture onto the corn ,

I wrapped the corn in tinfoil and baked in the oven ]

[ after the corn was nice & hot , I crumbled

the queso fresco over the corn ]

[ full of flavor & so easy ... my kind of side ! ]

caramel apple slices

I don't think I'm the only one that 

fully embraces the fall season when it is still

clearly summer .

not only have I started my daily pumpkin 

iced coffee habit, but I've already fully

transitioned into my fall wardrobe ( yes I wore a 

cowl neck sweater tunic when it was 80 degrees )

and have begun a list of autumn-inspired recipes

( read : roasted pumpkin seed brittle ) .

I love this time of year - the fresh smell of the air ,

crisp mornings , and cool evenings - but inside my apartment

fall also means warm candles, comforting meals , &

enjoying the company of good friends .

my friend melissa from college came over for dinner

last night, so for dessert I made these caramel

apple slices using halloween sprinkles - because I know

she'd appreciate the cute skull candies as much as I did .

granny smith, gala, & fuji apples .

soaking the apple slices in lemon not only adds 

amazing flavor , but also keeps them from browning .

instead of making homemade caramel ,

I cheated and melted down caramel squares

in a double boiler .

caramel squares + milk 

how cute are these sprinkles ... I can't

finished product !

hot turkey sausage & goat cheese pizza

I love experimenting with different pizzas.

to me, one can rarely stumble upon a bad pizza -

from lunchables ( yes I still like them , no joey doesn't

let me get them ) to gourmet brick oven .

this pizza was created from the random 

assortments in our refrigerator +

hot italian turkey sausage , creating 

a delish pie !

[ de - cased turkey sausage to make into chopped meat ]

[ I love the texture & added flavor of whole wheat dough ]

[ mozz + goat cheese + garlic ]

[ + the turkey & sauteed red onion ]

[ + arugula & olive oil ]

[ = amazing & easy pizza ! ]

filet mignon & greens

after a week & a half of eating healthy , 

joey & I have been feeling better than

ever & have been finding so many

ways to enjoy our food at the same time .

last night , we made the most amazing 

steak salad . the salad was simple - filet mignon ,

arugula , romaine , goat cheese , & 

a lemon vinaigrette , but incredibly 

delectable  !

[ our vinaigrette - lemon juice , honey ,

apple cider vinegar , extra virgin olive oil ,

 salt & pepper to taste ]

[ filet mignon sauteed lightly in white wine , extra virgin 

olive oil , & garlic ]

[ lettuce mix of arugula & romaine ]

[ crumbled goat cheese on top ]

[ end product ]

these ingredients worked perfectly together 

for a simple , fresh , & healthy meal -

a must try for yourself !

turkey taco salad in lettuce wraps

yes , joey & I are still eating healthy

& really do feel good about it .

like I said , though we have been 

eating better , it doesn't mean our

meals haven't been yummy .

I'm a huge taco person ,

so to satisfy those cravings while 

eating healthier , we made a delicious 

version omitting the shells , using turkey

meat rather than beef, & toppings 

that are full of flavor .

[ ingredients for our mango peach salsa ]

[ spices for the turkey meat - cumin , paprika ,

chipotle seasoning , & red pepper flakes ]

[ we love lettuce wraps because you still

have the crunch a taco shell would give minus

the carbs ! ]

sloppy joe pockets

this may weather has seriously put me in a funk .

I've been feeling so tired , have been wanting to do

everything / nothing at the same time , & 

especially picky regarding my food choices .

I've come to find , however , that the times

joey & I are the pickiest in respect to our meals

are the times we end up with the best outcome .

we've been wanting to use spring roll wrappers for 

quite some time now , so stuffing ingredients into the shells

seemed like the best idea last night . enter : sloppy joe pockets .

[ joey made his own sloppy joe mix -

no canned stuff here ! ]

passionfruit margaritas

in honor of cinco de mayo ,

joey & I concocted these amazing drinks .

ever since our first time traveling to puerto rico 

last march , joey & I have tried out just about every

passionfruit drink there is , trying to find the best one .

when we found a new brand of passionfruit juice ,

we knew immediately that we'd be adding them 

to our margaritas to justly celebrate the holiday .

obviously any excuse to drink my favorite alcoholic beverage

is fine by me , & it is so simple to make .

lime juice , triple sec , tequila , passionfruit ,

of course salt on the rim , & you've got yourself

an amazing reason to take part in cinco de mayo !