It would seem irresponsible to be a food blogger and not give you uses for all that zucchini and summer squash that starts crowding farmer’s market tables and CSA pick-ups come July. These delicate vegetables are ones that need to be used sooner rather than later. This makes a perfect appetizer, certainly works for dinner and basically tastes like sun-kissed goodness anytime you choose to make it. The ingredients are simple; this is definitely an example of the sum being greater than its parts.
I’m back in Michigan, where I live, after an amazing weekend in Vermont. As much as I truly love my life here with my family, my heart definitely has a little wanderlust. I love to explore new places, hike unfamiliar trails and eat at local restaurants in cities not my own. My dear girlfriend from college and I met in Burlington to do exactly these things.
This won’t be the last granola recipe I post here, but it’s the perfect one to start. This is, hands down, my best basic granola. No fruit, no seeds, just oats, nuts and natural sweeteners. If your oats are gluten-free, the granola will be too. If you’re not already convinced, consider this: your house will smell AMAZING. Plus, every single person I have ever gifted this granola loved it. Okay. Let’s head to the kitchen.
I don’t like to label my kids with names like “picky,” but the truth is, the 10-year-old kind of is. The fact that he requests this smoothie (“Mom! Can you make the kale and ginger smoothie please?!”) is a serious seal of approval. There isn’t a time I don’t love this smoothie. Morning, yes. Post work-out, yes. Feeling sluggish, yes. Having friends over, yes. Putting it in the toddler’s cup when she’s giving her green beans the evil eye, yes.
