Rosemary Garlic Focaccia Bread

Focaccia bread has always been near and dear to my heart because it was my favorite food when i studied in Italy almost 4 years ago.  It wasn't just an "oh, I l always had a side of focaccia bread with my pasta" type of love.  I'm talking I ate more focaccia bread than I did spaghetti, croissants and gelato combined.  At this point, I like to consider myself a connoisseur, so it's hard to find a truly authentic recipe in America.  Lucky for you guys, I've been researching different recipes on Italian websites, and this is as close to the real thing as I can get.  It's surprisingly easy to make yourself, but just make sure you clear out your afternoon because the process is a little lengthy with the time needed for the dough to rise.  It worked perfectly with my massive baking day last Sunday!  I made the bread dough before I started my butternut squash soup and apple crisp, and whipped up the other recipes while this was rising!  It was a heavenly trio to say the least!

Autumn Favorites

Howie's parents came to visit over the weekend, and we had the best time taking them apple picking out in the country!  We went to Burnham Orchards, an apple farm in Berlin Heights, OH, a little southwest of Vermilion.  You pay $16.00 for 1/2 bushel, and literally can squeeze 50 apples inside of it!  Obviously I've been eating them for snacks, but I LOVE trying to cook with fresh produce.  I made the epitome of a fall meal: butternut squash soup, garlic rosemary focaccia bread and apple crisp.  Surprisingly, both the apple crisp AND the butternut squash soup use apples!  But the thing I like most?  How easy it is to make them!

Peanut Butter Cup Brownies

Over the weekend, Howie's parents were in town, and we thought of taking them to a picnic lunch at Huntington Beach since they had never been there before.  It was also 72 degrees, sunny and the leaves were beginning to change...that perfect combination just doesn't happen in Cleveland!  We planned on picking up some subs along the way, but I wanted to pack a quick dessert to bring so we can have something sweet at the end of lunch.  I was planning on just throwing a quick batch of box brownies into the oven after my morning boxing class, but I spontaneously invented peanut butter cup brownies!  

Breakfast Power Smoothies

So I totally love everything about Cleveland...except the east side.  The traffic, the fact that you can't get from point A to point B without going 4 miles out of the way via winding roads, the fact that the highways somehow failed to connect to any of the important areas, did I mention TRAFFIC?  Clearly I've been a self-proclaimed west-sider for life (with the exception of an occasional hike or a Nordstrom adventure).  But then I landed this awesome design job in Solon.  Karma sucks.  It's a tough life making the 55 minute trek in the morning, so I basically attempt to wake up as late as possible while still looking presentable.  I started making these incredible breakfast smoothies so I can bring my meal on the go, and I realized I was officially addicted when I started making them on weekend mornings when I was in no rush to get anywhere.  It's nutrition in a cup, and so refreshing!!  Especially paired with a sunny Saturday morning and a brand new issue of Travel & Leisure magazine (with Firenze on the cover nonetheless)!  Try making it yourself, and be sure to experiment with the fruit you add too!

Care Package Cookies

My younger brother, Robert, was having a tough week at Miami.  He's double majoring in Finance and Accounting, and the Farmer School of Business was totally kicking his butt between exams, assignments and the career fair this week.  It basically meant a whole lot less partying, and way more studying.  I remember how much the care packages my mom sent me filled with baked goods or Starbucks gift cards cheered me up during undergrad, so I wanted to do the same for him.  I baked him one of his favorites, oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, and filled the rest of the package up with enough candy to put him in a sugar coma! 

Hump Day Mojitos!

The weather was rainy, the work week seemed to be taking forever, and my mom had an abundance of fresh mint in her garden. We decided to make the best of a Wednesday night by concocting delicious mojitos using the sweet mint, sour limes, fizzy club soda, and of course, good old Barcardi.  Pairing our drinks with steak fajitas and homemade guacamole?? Our girls night in couldn't be better!

Roasted Red Pepper Tomato Bisque

It finally felt like fall yesterday!  Yes, I'm one of the weirdos that actually prefers sweater weather over the 80 degree days.  In honor of the first chilly (and rainy) day of September, Howie and I both thought it was appropriate to make a classic cold weather dish: grilled cheese sandwiches and a hearty soup.  We spent a little too long debating what kind of soup to make, but decided that the prerequisites were that it had to be a) thick b) filling c) ideally include some veggies (since soup is the only way Howie can eat them) and d) taste good with grilled cheese.  We ended up choosing one of my favorite homemade soups, a roasted red pepper tomato bisque that my mom started making a few years ago.  The creamy, herb-filled soup paired with the crunchy grilled cheese paninis that Howie made was a truly unbeatable combo!