Roasted Eggplant Dip

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Roasted Eggplant Dip

It was after a trip to the farmer’s market when I got an eggplant that I first made this dip for the boys.  It was their first time having eggplant, that I can remember anyway.  I quickly realized they like eggplant.  We planted some that summer!

Unfortunately for us we weren’t able to harvest many eggplants last year.  It wasn’t the best year for anything other than tomatoes in the garden.  We continued to get them at the market though and tried cooking it several different ways.  Ewan was the biggest fan, though the other boys liked it as well.

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Dark Chocolate Coconut Ice Pops

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Dark Chocolate Coconut Ice Pops

Here in the South it may be spring by the calendar year, but based on weather some may call it summer.  We’ve already had a few days that hit 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32C).  That means it’s time for frozen treats.

We have a couple sets of ice pop molds and the boys are always begging to use them.  Now is the time of year when I say “yes” more often!  There are so many different things you can put in your ice pops.  Anything from pudding creations, fruit and yogurt, puréed fruit and juice, alcohol for the grown ups…

This time around I  did one of the easiest possible combinations.  It requires only two ingredients.  Does it get any easier?  I think not!

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In My Kitchen – May 2016

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It’s May and spring is in full force here in South Carolina.  I originally had several things I was going to put in this In My Kitchen post, including things I’ve forgotten in recent months.  But then the weather got gorgeous and all I can think about is how much I am loving spring!

Thanks to the lovely Maureen over at Orgasmic Chef for this monthly roundup.   It’s always fun to peak into bloggers’ kitchens and see what is happening around this world.  I may be excited about spring here, but people in the southern hemisphere is welcoming autumn after a long summer.

So back to my excitement about spring.  Two foods shout “spring” to me, asparagus and strawberries.  Since our garden asparagus didn’t do too terribly well  (or it shot up before we noticed) I’ll stick with a strawberry theme for now.  This past weekend the boys and I went strawberry picking at Cottle Strawberry Farm.  I’ve been taking the boys there since they were babies in a carrier.  It’s a family outing I look forward to every spring.

StrawberryCollage

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Blackberry Gin Lemonade

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Blackberry Gin Lemonade

It’s been a really strange spring.  We started out normal and then wham, two late frosts/freezes.  It wasn’t good for my garden.  All the pepper plants died and several of the tomato plants too.  Luckily the hydrangeas are all right.  I’ve seeded more tomato and pepper plants and hopefully we will still have a great garden, just harvesting a few things later than normal.

The true spring weather came a couple weeks ago and in our house that means weekend cocktails on the porch.  Josh is usually working in his garage on some project or another and I’m either in the garden or doing something in the house most of the day.  Come five o’clock  we’re ready to kick back and relax.

The boys also enjoy cocktails on the porch.  I fix them a pitcher of cocktails, some kind of bubbly juice and seltzer, add a skewer of fruit in a glass and they are as happy as can be.  A plate of cheese and crackers and everyone is loving the weekend!

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Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies with Hazelnuts

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Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies with Hazelnuts

You might be questioning me already…just looking at the photo they don’t look like chocolate chip cookies.  Chocolate chocolate chip maybe, but not regular chocolate chip cookies.  There’s an easy explanation for that, these cookies are made with spelt flour.  The problem was the name of the cookie was already long, adding the word spelt just didn’t sound right!

So what is spelt anyway?  Simply put it is an ancient non wheat grain.  Spelt flour does still have some gluten but is easier to digest than wheat flour.  It also has a little more protein than wheat flour.  It has a slightly sweet and nutty flavor, thus making it perfect for cookies with nuts.

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