Author: Debbie

Tasty Tuesday: Let’s Talk Tomatoes!

Katherine Trauger: Tomatoes. Wow. Not!

This year, it seems either you HAVE enough tomatoes, thank you…

…or else you don’t.

This year, we don’t. We planted 40 Bradleys and Brandywines and got about ten quarts of tomato juice, total.

She sighs.

However, she DOES have tomato recipes and for those of you who have been blessed, she is willing to share and bless you even more! READ MORE

Jamie Smith: Eggplant Vegetable Tian

We discovered tian a couple of years ago and we make it pretty frequently from Spring through early Fall. The original variation has potato instead of eggplant in it, which is also delicious. We started making this version because my husband loves eggplant and neither one of us really need the carbs from the potato.

We now prefer this version of tian that is filled with tasty summer vegetables and is easy to make. The eggplant does add a step, but it’s worth the extra work. READ MORE

Gina Knuppenburg: Balsamic Tomato Salad

This delicious tomato salad has all my favorite summer ingredients: red onions, fresh garlic, basil and mozzarella. I’m new to the tomato game. Did you know I wouldn’t touch them when I was a kid? I really do believe that giving up meat had opened my pallet and enabled me to experience vegetables in a whole new way. Now, mushrooms, on the other hand. No way. Still. ha! READ MORE

Debbie Arnold: Tomato, Peach and Basil Salad with Balsamic Drizzle

This easy, easy salad is just one of those impromptu things that came about just because…well, I had a bunch of tomatoes and several peaches that needed to be eaten. I had often made a tomato and watermelon salad and just figured tomatoes would work well with peaches as well. And they certainly did! READ MORE

Debbie Arnold: Tomato, Peach and Basil Salad with Balsamic Vinegar Drizzle

Peach season in Arkansas is absolutely one of my most favorite times of the year. Yes, I love strawberries. But we can get some decent organic ones, albeit NOT the best, strawberries year round. Really nice blueberries, blackberries and raspberries are generally always available, But peaches? Not so much. Which makes me anticipate their goodness even more.

This easy, easy salad is just one of those impromptu things that came about just because…well, I had a bunch of tomatoes and several peaches that needed to be eaten. I had often made a tomato and watermelon salad and just figured tomatoes would work well with peaches as well. And they certainly did!

The amounts will vary according to what you ave on hand or on how much you need. It’s really flexible which makes it super nice, right? READ MORE

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Tasty Tuesday: Pasta Take 3

Katherine Trauger: My Spaghetti Farm

My first lesson in pasta-making came right after I married. My brand new in-laws considered pot roast served with egg noodles cooked in the broth a necessary skill and my husband’s mother, bless her, made sure I knew how to make the noodles. READ MORE

Ricci Alexis: Cajun Chicken Pasta

If you know me at all then you know I love cajun seasoning on everything!! I made Skinny Taste’s Cajun Chicken Pasta a few weeks ago and have since then put my own spin on it and unfortunately it’s not so skinny anymore. But it’s not as bad as it could be so I am calling it a win! READ MORE

Rhonda Franz: Summer Spiced Corn

As much as any cook would like to use vegetables totally fresh from the garden, the farmers market, or the grocery store—this doesn’t always happen. Life does. Once in a while, a mom gets sick (summer virus, anyone?) and things like corn on the cob lie around on the kitchen cart, until she can pull herself back together and start helping to feed people once again.

Because if anyone can salvage a food that’s still in good and healthy shape to be eaten, it’s a parent who has a house of hungry boys.

My summer spiced corn recipe, no joke, came from such a place. It came from sweet corn on the cob minus much of its sweet and with the shriveling process started. The scrumptious mix of kernels with cumin, chilies, chili pepper, salsa, and other ingredients came from knowing that if you can wield oven controls well enough, and know what spices go well together, one can make a masterpiece.

Or at least a pretty good recipe…post is on CaptainMom.net

http://captainmom.net/recipe/summer-kitchen-recipe-spiced-corn/

Rhonda Franz writes articles and essays for clients and to-do lists for her three lively boys. She cooks enormous batches of food and manages household operations alongside her pilot husband’s unpredictable flight schedule, using many of the adventures for writing work and website, CaptainMom.net Her Pandora radio stations include old hymns, concertos by Mozart, and Aerosmith. She hopes to soon eat, and serve, some totally fresh corn on the cob.

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site: CaptainMom.net

Tasty Tuesday: Pasta Please Take 2

Amy Gramlich: Cheesey Chicken Spaghetti

This chicken spaghetti recipe post is written with bittersweet sentiments. One of the first friends I made when I moved to Little Rock was my friend B. I have some fine memories of our times together – like the time he poured a shot or two of Jagermeister into my chocolate chip cookie batter. The cookies turned out fine…maybe a little chewier than I would have liked. I opted not to take them to the school potluck. READ MORE

Ricci Alexis: Chicken Fajita Pasta

Chicken and Fajitas are two of my favorite things. I could seriously eat Mexican food all day every day. So combining that idea into a pasta? YES PLEASE!! I am a pasta-holic from way back when. I have been trying to cut back but sometimes you just need something hot and warm and this recipe fits that bill perfectly! It may just be my new go-to comfort food. Plus it’s a one pot meal and you just can’t beat that! READ MORE

Debbie Arnold: Pappardelle Bolognese

I love a a deep, rich, almost intoxicating Bolognese. The joy of gathering the ingredients, mincing, dicing — I enjoy all of it. And I especially like the all-day cooking of it about as much as I love, love the way it makes my kitchen smell all homey and welcoming. And the taste? Oh my goodness. READ MORE

Gina Knuppenburg: Cheese Tortellini with Garlic Sauce

Thom’s back in the kitchen! And, that means my taste buds are happy again {not to mention-the poor guy has lost ten + pounds having to eat my dinners over the last two months}. For his first real-thrown-together meal he’s prepared post surgery-he knocked it outta the park. Or, off the stove. READ MORE

Anita Stafford: Lemon Basil Pasta Salad

This colorful salad is quick to make, but it tastes like a dish that takes hours to prepare. The wonderful fresh taste makes it a favorite of mine. Any type of tomato can be substituted for the cherry tomatoes. READ MORE

Ricci Alexis: Bang Bang Pasta

For this recipe I just sautéed my shrimp in a little Rice Bran Oil, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder and then I mixed them with my pasta and sauce. For the pasta I actually used a brown rice penne pasta that I picked up at Trader Joe’s when I was in Dallas. I have professed my love of brown rice many times here on this blog and I love brown rice pasta just as much! What can I say, I love brown rice! READ MORE

Heather Disarro: Grilled Italian Antipasto Burgers {Foodie Friday}

Alternatively these could be called “Flavor-Punch Burgers” or “All Other Burgers Pale in Comparison Burgers.”

I don’t use those terms lightly because ever since my days of Meat Class in college I’ve been hyper aware of how delicious a perfectly salt-seasoned, well-seared piece of beef can be. Bonus points if it’s in burger form with all the fixings and sandwiched between two pieces of perfectly grilled bread.

What’s that you say? Back up and talk about Meat Class? READ MORE

Heather Disarro is a food-centric lifestyle blogger who is passionate about embracing the beauty that surrounds us in our everyday lives. She is a Texan living the expat life in central Arkansas with her husband, two sons, and two massive dogs. Heather writes her blog, Heather’s Dish , from an office filled with dust, dog fur, toys and plenty of love, grace and music. She revels in the opportunity to bring the love of cooking to the world as a way to love others well! You can also find Heather on Facebook , Twitter , Pinterest , Instagram and Google+.

Tasty Tuesday: Pasta Please

Anita Stafford: Broccoli, Grape and Pasta Salad

This pasta salad is crunchy and full of healthy goodness. Not everyone loves broccoli, but I think this salad could change minds. Even a skeptic might be converted when the broccoli is tossed with all the red grapes, pasta, toasted pecans, bacon, and tangy dressing. READ MORE

Debbie Arnold: Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad with Edamame

This salad is an adaptation of one I read about in Better Homes and Gardens. Since the garden is beginning to flourish with fresh summer vegetables, I decided to make use of those and create this salad to have for lunch recently. It’s great to make ahead and have on hand for a light lunch or dinner. I think you could easily add chicken or shrimp if you’d like although there’s plenty of protein already with the addition of edamame. READ MORE

Pat Downs: Pasta Primavera with Grilled Chicken

I do my Primavera a little differently. My husband loves corn so I use corn often in lieu of green peas. I also love the Pasta & Roni Angel Hair Pasta with Herbs. It contains just the right amount for the two of us. It will yield 4 servings after you mix all the other ingredients in. READ MORE

Amy Gramlich: Tallerine – Southern Family Favorite

If you love a good Southern dish ooing and gooing with cheese, you must try our tallerine – a longtime family favorite of my Arkansas family.

One of my fondest recurring activities while growing up was going over to my aunt and uncle’s house on Sunday evenings for tallerine. My Aunt Rosie made the best (and only) tallerine I had ever eaten. If you don’t care for processed cheeses like Velveeta, you may want to stay clear. But if you do like Velveeta, hold your appetite because you will want seconds. My whole family in Arkansas is about as southern as it gets. We know what’s good! READ MORE

Ricci Alexis: Creamy Chicken Spinach Mushroom Pasta with Sun-dried Tomatoes

For this recipe I was originally going to lighten it up and make it with zoodles but I forgot to grab some zucchini from the store and had half of a box of bow tie pasta in my pantry so that was that, regular pasta it was! I also love that the “sauce” you can eat alone, which I did when I ran out of noodles, HA!

The original recipe didn’t call for spinach but I love to throw spinach in pasta to kick up the nutritional value and make my food look prettier. Plus, just like in smoothies, you can’t really taste it. I tried throwing substituting kale for spinach but it just tastes a little too bitter for me. Do you like kale?? READ MORE

Brittney Lee: Mexican Chicken Salad

I love cooking, but some nights when I get home from work, I don’t want to spend lots of time in the kitchen. Or some days when it’s really hot, the thought of standing over the stove isn’t appealing. We love sandwich night at our house because it gets dinner on the table fast, and often, it doesn’t involve any cooking.

I love chicken salads, but many of them are made with fruit, and my husband doesn’t love sweetness in his savory dishes. So I created a very savory chicken salad that he loves. Mexican chicken salad is full of juicy corn, flavorful green chilis and crispy red onions. Get the recipe here.

Brittney Lee is a native Arkansan with a love for bright lights and big city. She often escapes her 20-acre home south of Fort Smith to shop, eat, and catch a concert in the big city. She blogs about her life, her family, her faith, her adventures, and her country home at RazorbackBritt.com.

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Preserving Summer, Part 2

RACHEL HOUGH: SQUASH JAM

This time of year is when the garden typically starts to explode. I am feverishly trying to get all of the harvest frozen, canned, or dehydrated. But this is also the time where I tend to make memories. If you’ve been following me for any amount of time you have heard me mention Grandma Polly (my husband’s grandmother). I credit her, and her mother for teaching me just about all I know about homesteading. Grandma is getting older, and doesn’t do as much in the kitchen, as a result I am blessed to be able to do her canning and preserving for her. Last year for her birthday I gifted her with her favorite Squash Jam. She eats it almost every morning with biscuits or toast. Last week she mentioned that she was almost out and hinted that she would like me to make some more. READ MORE

BRENDA EMBRY: WILD PLUM JELLY

This is the first year my dad was able beat the deer and birds to his wild plums and what a treat they were! After eating my fill, I decided that some wild plum jelly would be a good way to use up the rest of the fruit. READ MORE

RACHEL HOUGH: SLOW COOKER APPLESAUCE

If you are thinking to yourself, “I’m not ‘Susie Homemaker’ or ‘June Cleaver’, I don’t have time to make my own damn applesauce!”. You are wrong! It is literally apples, water, and a few hours in the crockpot. You can either put the applesauce in the refrigerator, or do like I do and hot water bath can it. I know where the it came from and what’s inside it and I am happy and proud to feed it to my family and friends. READ MORE

DEBBIE ARNOLD: SLOW COOKER TOMATO SAUCE

One way I like to preserve this fresh taste of summer is to make this very versatile tomato sauce. I keep the flavors simple so I can use it in multiple ways. It’s good as it is for a simple pasta, as a pizza sauce, or made into a more loaded bolognese.

While you can make this in a large soup pot on the stovetop, I think the flavor improves when it’s made in the slow cooker. Plus, it’s just so simple to do. I use whatever tomatoes I have on hand, but I do try to include some San Marzanos since they are true paste tomatoes. It’s not absolutely necessary, though. You’ll just have to take more time to reduce the liquid in the sauce. READ MORE

James Moore

Everybody’s favorite vlogger, Busvlogger’s James Moore, brings his delicious Meatloaf Burgers on the Grill to this week’s Foodie Friday. He has lots to say about those! Check it out.