FoodFash

Adventure Begins in the Kitchen

Filet With Broccoli

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Filet with Broccoli

When my friend Alana returned from three weeks in Asia, she brought back a set of chopsticks for FoodFash.  And since I seemed to have thrown away any set of sticks I had accumulated over the years, it was a gift I received with much excitement.  A gift I couldn’t wait to use {and photograph}.

Peppercorn Crusted Steak Filet

So I decided to make a dish that I typically enjoy, but always wish was better: beef with broccoli.  And I bettered it up by buttering up a 6 ounce filet, using this steak recipe that’s so amazing there’s never a need to deviate.

Broccoli Stir Fry

When the steak was finished, I cooked the broccoli using this recipe as my guide.  I used similar quantities, but replaced soy sauce with liquid aminos, peanut oil with sunflower oil, sesame oil with coconut oil, and added 1 tablespoon of fish sauce.  I loved that the broccoli was seasoned but not drowning in an overpowering syrup.  And naturally, subbing whatever cut of beef that is typically used with a filet was an A++ choice.

Spaghetti Squash Shrimp Scampi

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Spaghetti Squash Shrimp Scampi

There’s something about organizing kitchen cabinets at home and presenting in front of a first-time crowd at work that put an extra pep in my step today.  I borderline skipped to Whole Foods this evening, enjoying the slightly crisp air and an even more crisp mind.

Shrimp

The last thing I wanted to do was fog everything up with a heavy dinner.  I wanted light and flavorful.  Seafood, fresh veggies, and herbs would do the trick.  Seafood, fresh veggies, and herbs… always do the trick.

Shrimp Scampi

Add music, breeze-filled windows, and quality time in the kitchen – it was the best weeknight I’ve had in quite some time.  I got to cooking to the tune of this album.

Spaghetti Squash Shrimp Scampi 2

And when it was all said and done, I was left with the exact dinner I had in mind sitting front of me, ready to photograph.  It was lovely.

Array

Homemade Granola

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Homemade Granola in Mason Jar

I’ve been a recipe brainstorming machine lately, trying to come up with the perfect mango recipe for the National Mango Board‘s newest mango cookbook.  I thought of the perfect cocktail.  I consulted with my favorite bartender.  And then…

Homemade Granola Ingredients

I found out they were eliminating the cocktail section of the book.  I was with a brand new bottle of gin and I was bummed.  Things could have been worse. But I quickly morphed my mango green tea cocktail into a dessert.

I whipped up some mango mousse, added green tea simple syrup {which tasted divine}, and took a bite of the most disappointing dessert ever.  I put my creation in the fridge and went about my day.

Homemade Granola

When I returned home I went straight to the fridge {as I often do} and was hungry enough to take a bite of the mousse.  I had a lightbulb moment.  This wasn’t a good dessert because it wasn’t sweet enough, strong enough.  But it had the potential to be an awesome breakfast.

Mango Mousse with Homemade Granola 2

I whipped up some mousse sans green tea syrup.  I whipped up some homemade granola.  I came to the realization homemade granola knocks the socks off of store bought granola.  And I successfully combined the granola with the mousse to make a super yum mango mousse breakfast parfait!

Array

Ultimate Egg Sandwich

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Gourmet Egg Sandwich

I’ve had such a fun few months working with HEB Primo Picks. Whenever I received their package, I was both challenged and inspired by the grouping of products they selected.  This month’s package included a product that instantly reminded me of a sandwich I had during a San Fran trip. Bacon jam, meet egg sandwich.

Goat Cheese & Bacon Jam

Although the San Fran sandwich had actual bacon and not jam, the bacon jam triggered a craving for egg and arugula.  And goat cheese and tomato.

Homemade Egg Sandwich

I stacked all the ingredients on an extra thin sandwich bun {toasted} and went to town eating breakfast for dinner.  The bacon jam added umami and spice while maintaining the overall lightness of the sandwich.  I dug it.

As part of the HEB Primo Picks team, I received compensation to sample various Primo Picks products. The opinions in this post are completely my own and based on my experience.