This is a really simple one to keep in your back pocket! You probably already have all the ingredients. Make sure you have 2-3 lemons though.
You need:
INGREDIENTS
1/2 c butter, melted
1 c sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 TBSP lemon juice
1/4 tsp salt
1-1/2 c all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 c milk
1/3 c lemon juice
1/4 c sugar
This is a 2 bowl endeavor which isn’t bad.
Preheat oven to 325.
1. In a large bowl, combine the sugar and butter.
2. Add eggs and lemon juice. Mix.
3. Add salt, flour & baking powder. Mix. (Normally I whisk together dry ingredients in a separate bowl but I didn’t do it this time and it came out perfect!)
4. Add milk and mix till just combined.
5. Fill well-greased loaf pan with batter and bake for 1 hour or until golden brown.
6. In a small bowl, combine 1/3 c lemon juice and 1/4 c sugar. Use a toothpick to poke holes in the top of the cake. Drizzle the lemon juice/sugar mixture over the top of the cake.
This is unbelievably tasty despite or maybe due to the simplicity of the ingredients! A perfect pre-dinner salad that you can make quickly or even ahead of time.
My neighbor gives me bags of lemons from her prolific lemon tree from time to time.
This time, before I start squeezing & freezing I remembered a simple carrot salad I’d just read about in La Tartine Gourmande. I noticed the book at the library and quickly photocopied a few recipes from it.
Try this!!! I mean it.
All you need:
The amounts in this recipe serve about 4 people. I would definitely double it next time but I was hand grating…
INGREDIENTS:
4 large carrots, peeled
1 TBSP flat leaf parsley, chopped (I used Italian parsley as that’s all I had)
2 TBSP chives, chopped
Vinaigrette:
sea salt & pepper
1/4 c fresh lemon juice
1 garlic clove, minced
6 TBSP olive oil
Grate the carrots and place in large bowl. In a separate smaller bowl, combine the vinaigrette ingredients in the order listed, whisk together and pour over the carrots. Combine well with spoon. Cover & refrigerate. Dress with the fresh herbs just before serving.
Maddie ate 3 bowls in rapid succession and then asked if she could take some to school the next day. There were no leftovers.
Some call this the “Shrek” smoothie. Since my kids don’t know Shrek as well as Kermit I called it a Kermit smoothie.
They LOVE it!
INGREDIENTS:
1 frozen banana
1 c frozen peaches
1 c frozen mango chunks
2-3 c cold almond milk
2-3 ice cubes
2 handfuls spinach
OPTIONAL: splash lemon or orange juice
Honestly, I don’t measure this stuff! I put about half the frozen fruit into the blender & 1 c of the almond milk & blend. Then add the ice cubes. Blend. (Add as much more almond milk as you may need.) Add the rest of the fruit. Blend. Then add the spinach. Blend. As you can probably tell, I don’t have a powerful blender. If you have a Vita Mix or whatever you can probably toss it all in at once!
Start out using less almond milk until you get used to it. It’s easier to thin the smoothie out than it is to make it thicker.
I love to add a few ice cubes and 2-3 TBSP lemon juice since it’s a sweet drink and needs a little acid.
You can’t taste the spinach at all! My kids LOVE this! They have had variations on this one for the past three days. What’s the spinach for? Spinach is SOOOOOOO full of vitamins!! And it makes a crazy bright Kermit green smoothie! (Unless you add blueberries & strawberries, in which case it makes a gnarly brown smoothie that is still delicious.)
There’s my other “smoothie” on the left. A STRONG coffee.
The kids drink it from those plastic cups you get at restaurants.This one is from Benihana’s. And the beer cozy (koozie?) is courtesy of a pre-kid weekend up at the Tuolumne River. Classy!
Maddie wants to call it “Frog Pillow Smoothie” after a particularly filthy little someone special to her.
Hope you all had fun last weekend! All I remember doing was jumping in a jumper with a bunch of little kids and hiking in the noon day sun WITHOUT sunscreen or hats. Real smart.
Here’s a tasty, simple little salad I made last Friday. I saw the fennel at the farmer’s market last Wednesday and at $1 a bulb it seemed a good deal.
You know who got me into fennel? My dad. He makes a really good salad.
Here’s what you need:
INGREDIENTS:
1 medium-large zucchini, sliced into paper thin coins
2 small fennel bulbs, trimmed & shaved paper thin (or as thin as you can get them!)
2/3 c loosely chopped fresh dill
1/3 c fresh lemon juice (about 3 juicy lemons)
salt
4 or 5 generous handfuls of arugula
1/2 c pine nuts, toasted
1/3 c feta cheese, crumbled
OPTIONAL: Honey
1. Combine the fennel, zucchini and dill in a bowl.
Toss with the lemon juice, olive oil, and 1/4 tsp salt.
Just EXACTLY enough lemon juice, any extra carelessly spilled
Set aside and let marinate for 20 minutes, or up to an hour.
2. Just before serving salad, put the arugula in a large bowl. This is also from my garden – from last summer if you can believe it. It’s been producing since then. Wow!
3. Scoop all of the marinating veg on top of the arugula and pour as much of the lemon juice dressing as desired on top of that. Toss gently. Adjust dressing to your taste with more lemon juice, salt or pepper. If the lemon juice is too sour – add a bit of honey.
Not THIS!!!
4. Sprinkle pine nuts & feta on top & toss gently. Serve!
Author: Christina Cox (Source: Super Natural Every Day)
Recipe type: Salad
Prep time:
Total time:
Serves: 4
Light, tangy, crunchy salad!
Ingredients
1 medium-large zucchini, sliced into paper thin coins
2 small fennel bulbs, trimmed & shaved paper thin (or as thin as you can get them!)
⅔ c loosely chopped fresh dill
⅓ c fresh lemon juice (about 3 juicy lemons)
salt
4 or 5 generous handfuls of arugula
½ c pine nuts, toasted
⅓ c feta cheese, crumbled
OPTIONAL: Honey
Instructions
Combine the fennel, zucchini and dill in a bowl. Toss with the lemon juice, olive oil, and ¼ tsp salt. Set aside and let marinate for 20 minutes, or up to an hour.
Just before serving salad, put the arugula in a large bowl.
Scoop all of the marinating veg on top of the arugula and pour as much of the lemon juice dressing as desired on top of that. Toss gently. Adjust dressing to your taste with more lemon juice, salt or pepper. If the lemon juice is too sour – add a bit of honey.
Sprinkle pine nuts & feta on top & toss gently. Serve!
FINALLY!!! A recipe the kids like. M even professes to liking avocados again after this one.
INGREDIENTS:
1-1/2 c orzo (whole wheat if you can find it)
5 c raw broccoli cut intros small florets & stems
2 cloves garlic, peeled
2/3 c pine nuts, toasted
1/3 c parmesan cheese
juice of 1 lemon
1/4 c olive oil
1/4 c creme fraiche
grated zest of 1 lemon
1 small ripe avocado, peeled, pitted & sliced (do this at the last minute!)
1. Bring a large pot of water to boil for the orzo. Salt generously, add the orzo, and cook according to the package instructions. Drain, rinse with cold water, and drain well again.
2. Cook the broccoli. While we’re on the subject – you can use the flowers and the stems in this recipe. Just be sure to peel the skin off the thick stems and then you can slice small coin shaped pieces. They are really tasty and that way as little as possible goes to waste.
Bring 3/4 c water to a boil in a large pot. Add a big pinch of salt and stir in the broccoli. Cover and cook for about 1 minute. Quickly drain in a strainer and run under cold water to stop cooking. Drain & set aside.
3. Make the pesto. (Yum!) Combine 2 cups of the cooked broccoli, the garlic, most of the pine nuts, the Parmesan, 1/4 tsp salt, and 2 TBSP lemon juice in a food processor. (I used my blender.) Drizzle in olive oil and creme fraiche and pulse until smooth. (I added those before I tried blending anything since I knew it wouldn’t work without some liquid.)
4. Just before serving, toss the orzo and remaining cooked broccoli with about 2/3rds of the broccoli pesto and the lemon zest. (I totally forgot the zest but will do it next time!) Thin with a little warm water of you like, then taste and adjust the salt, lemon juice and/or pesto. Mine needed more pesto.
Two ways to serve:
For a group – fold in avocados, turn out in a bowl or platter and top with remaining pine nuts & lemon slices for drizzling.
For individual servings – serve in single serving bowls with sliced avocado & pine nuts on top as well as a small sprinkle of parmesan & a lemon slice.
Ooooooooooooooo
Ahhhhhhhhhh….avocado porn!
This is a delicious & pretty comfort food. Both my kids loved it which makes it a big hit and a small miracle.
NOTES: You can make the separate parts ahead of time and refrigerate. I made them the afternoon before as I had a couple of friends coming by the next day. I ran hot water over the orzo & broccoli to take the fridge chill out and then tossed with the pesto.
Author: Christina Cox (slightly adapted from Super Natural Every Day)
Recipe type: Main
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 6
This is called a “salad” but I like to think of it as a yuppie’s macaroni & cheese. A tasty, healthy kid-friendly meal. In other words: a small miracle!
Ingredients
1-1/2 c orzo (or any other small pasta)
5 c raw broccoli cut into small florets & stems
2 cloves garlic, peeled
⅔ c pine nuts, toasted (see NOTE for how to toast)
⅓ c parmesan cheese
juice of 1 lemon
¼ c olive oil
¼ c creme fraiche
grated zest of 1 lemon
1 small ripe avocado, peeled, pitted & sliced (do this just before serving!)
Instructions
Bring a large pot of water to boil for the orzo. Salt generously, add the orzo, and cook according to the package instructions. Drain, rinse with cold water, and drain well again.
Cook the broccoli. Bring ¾ c water to a boil in a large pot. Add a big pinch of salt and stir in the broccoli. Cover and cook for about 1 minute. Quickly drain in a strainer and run under cold water to stop cooking. Drain & set aside.
Make the pesto. Combine 2 cups of the cooked broccoli, the garlic, most of the pine nuts, the Parmesan, ¼ tsp salt, and 2 TBSP lemon juice in a food processor. (I used my blender.) Drizzle in olive oil and creme fraiche and pulse until smooth. (I added those before I tried blending anything since I knew it wouldn’t work without some liquid.)
Just before serving, toss the orzo and remaining cooked broccoli with about ⅔rds of the broccoli pesto and the lemon zest. Thin with a little warm water of you like, then taste and adjust by adding salt, lemon juice and/or pesto.
Notes
TOASTING PINE NUTS: Heat oven to 400. Spread pine nuts evenly on a cookie sheet. Toast a few minutes until golden brown. Do NOT walk away & forget the pine nuts!
Two ways to serve:
1. For a group – fold in avocado slices, turn out in a bowl or platter and top with remaining pine nuts & lemon slices for drizzling.
2. For individual servings (and if you plan to have leftovers) – serve in single serving bowls with sliced avocado & pine nuts on top as well as a small sprinkle of parmesan & a lemon slice. (This way your whole salad will not turn brown overnight!)
