Ramadan is both a physically and spiritually intense month of fasting. The fast allows time for self-reflection and purification of mind, body, and soul. Abstaining from all food and water from just before sunrise to sunset is no small feat, but taking the time to slow down and reflect can be be immensely rewarding.
I often make shopping decisions based on form and not on function. I have dish towels that are way more pretty than they are absorbent. I have beautiful leather coasters that stick to the bottom of my glasses when you go to take a sip. And I have a cabinet full of adorable juice glasses that are too small for even a not-thirsty child.
I tend to prefer things that are nice to look at and am willing to adjust how I operate if it means getting to use something cute.
Yet, I happen to have a basket full of Scrub Daddy sponges, which I find to be incredibly cheesy. (Even the name is kinda cheesy!) And I couldn’t live without them.
Last December, I announced to I’m sure at least ten thousand well-deserved eye rolls that after 10 years of food blogging and one cookbook I had finally learned how to make coffee. I mean, yeah, it was melodramatic. I, too, can scoop whatever the Maxwell House can says into the filter and press the on button, as I did most weekend mornings as a kid. What I meant was that I had figured out how to make the coffee I most liked to drink and spent too much money on at coffee shops these days, and I had found this delight with the simplest old-fashioned thing, a stovetop espresso maker.
I then promised you a tutorial. It’s been 6 months. I got nervous. It would be a little weird if I were suddenly an expert on something I’d been doing for 7 weeks. I thought I needed more time with it. In these 6 months, I’ve become one of those people who previously baffled me because they said they didn’t like to buy coffee out; they liked theirs at home better. But here we are.
Some weeks our meal plan has a clear goal or theme that runs through it, and other weeks it’s just a collection of recipes that look delicious. This week’s challenge, though, is that most of what I’m craving right now — fast and fancy summer suppers — doesn’t feel super kid-friendly on paper.
So this week I’m sharing the meals I’m making, plus how I’ll adapt, rename, or rework these recipes to get — fingers-crossed! — my kids to try some new-to-them meals.
(Image credit: Joe Lingeman)
What’s not to love about trail mix? It’s equal parts sweet, savory, crunchy, and chewy — a perfect snack no matter what you’re craving. Throwing all these elements into a soft oatmeal cookie yields a one-handed treat that’s easier to eat than trail mix, yet still offers that same satisfying mix of dried fruit, toasty nuts, sweet chocolate, and yes, even salty bits of crunchy pretzel. Let’s just call these little guys trailblazers (pun intended), shall we?
In the summertime, “salad night” is a regular part of my dinner rotation. Some weeks I’ll even do salad night twice. It’s the simplest, most delicious way to clean out the crisper at the end of the week, a fun way to use up my farmers market haul, and, when it’s hot and I’m tired, it makes dinner super easy. From all-veggie salads to more substantial salads topped with meat or (ahem) beefed up with beans and hearty grains, here are 20 delicious salads to add to your summer meal plan.
In my quest to stick to a food budget, I’ve found that lunch is my downfall. I have some inexpensive breakfast ideas that get me out of bed in the morning (homemade muffins! Eggs!) and dinner is a place I’m now in the groove with for meal planning, but for some reason it’s hard for me to break the habit of going out to lunch when I’m at the office. Those fancy New York lunch salads add up, and I know I need to make a change if I want to really stick to a budget.
That’s why I was so excited today when our friends at Cup of Jo posted an ingenious idea for a $2 lunch. If that wasn’t already exciting enough, it just so happens that the base of the lunch comes from Trader Joe’s.
(Image credit: Christine Han)
Date bars have turned my daily dessert world upside down. You see, up until a few weeks ago I had never even heard about date bars, but after the first batch I knew I had found my new favorite, go-to cookie bar. These bars are made with only four major ingredients — dates, oats, butter, and a bit of brown sugar — and come together in about the time it takes the oven to preheat. They happen to be naturally gluten-free and low in added sugar, which means they’re the kind of treat that makes a near-perfect after-school snack (but something that pairs deliciously with a bourbon night cap too).
That’s not even the best part, though! Biting into these bars is the most delicious adventure in contrasting textures. The top is crisp and buttery with oat crumble, while the date filling is sweet as caramel and just as lush. The same oat mixture that crisps on top becomes chewy and nutty on the bottom of the pan. Personally, I call dibs on the corner pieces, but here’s how to make a whole pan of these delicious old-fashioned date bars.
Whether you use a standard Weber kettle grill at home or plan to use the public grills at a park or campsite, charcoal grills do require some cleaning and regular maintenance to make sure they function well and cook your food properly. Here’s how to do it!
(Image credit: Lucy Sparrow)
New York City has no shortage of bodegas, also known as corner delis. The Big Apple is reportedly home to 12,000 bodegas, although their numbers are dwindling due to rising rent and the growth in chain franchises. Now a new one has popped up at the Standard High Line in New York’s trendy meatpacking district and it’s a little different from the rest: it’s made entirely of felt.
