Prosciutto, Melon & Herbed Provalone

Prosciutto with melon is just divine, and it is so simple.  The sweet, juicy cantaloupe, the savory, salty cured ham - which itself lends a certain sweetness - both together will create a party in your palate!  This combo has been around for years, it is the O.G. of sweet and salty (O.G. = Original Gangsta, just in case...I figured I'd save you a Google search).  Now lets add some herbed provolone, shall we?

The inspiration for this plate came from our flight home from Hawaii.  Edmonton to Honolulu has got to be the LONGEST flight I've ever taken.  So when we grossly underspent our travel funds, an upgrade to first class, on our red eye flight home, was a no brainer!  I have NEVER flown first class - I don't get out much, period.  What a difference, OMG.  Complimentary non-stop beverage service, video players, luncheon plate, coffee and dessert.  Sadly, this will probably have been my only jaunt in first class (tear).

Scrambled Eggs & Food Allergy Talk

Scrambled eggs has to be one of THE first things I ever cooked on my own, all by myself.  It is my preferred method of preparing and eating eggs, and I really don't eat eggs quite that often.  S is allergic to eggs - he can eat them baked into something like a cake, bread, cookies, etc. - yet alone, they trigger his allergies, resulting in freakishly-swollen, distorted facial features aaaaand raspy voice.

There are many stories of his childhood experiences, and the process of elimination as to what foods would trigger a response.  One in particular, S was left with his Dad for a while, as his Mom ran a few errands.  I am assuming he was between 1-2 years old, he was in a highchair - I don't know nuthin bout birthin no babies, so just humor me with me estimation of age.  Corncob (S's Dad...he use to smoke a pipe) decided to make his famous One-Eyed-Jacks for breakfast...hollowing out a slice of white bread, breaking and egg into the center on a griddle, essentially a fried egg in toast.  All was going well; little baby S was starting in on his breakfast.  Corncob turns to prepare himself a Jack.  Stifled by screams, Corncob turns around to see his wife, D-9 (that's her nickname) standing in the garage/kitchen doorway - bags of whatever dropped by her feet -  hands clutching her face, yelping, OMG Corncob!!  Whatdidyoudo!!  There sat little baby S, happy as a clam, and swollen like a hot air balloon, diligently eating his eggs and toast.  So that's how it was determined that eggs, alone in full concentration, were a no-no.

Sunny-Honey No-Bake Cookies

These Sunny-Honey No-Bake Cookies are a peanut-free version of your typical peanut butter no bakes, except these are made with Sunbutter.  Sunbutter is my savior!!  Seeing how peanut butter is a no-no in our house (remember "bubble boy"- my hubs - and his slew of allergies?).  It is the closest thing to peanut butter, and I've tried them all.  It has a slightly thinner texture, and the taste ALMOST the same as peanut butter, almost.  Yet, if you are baking with it, you can hardly tell the difference.  Just a note:  the Natural Sunbutter may cause your baked goods to take on a greenish color - the chlorogenic acid, found naturally in sunflower seeds, causes this discoloration (which is perfectly safe to ingest, Kermit would approve), the Natural Sunbutter is just ground seeds, no sugars or tocopherols (preservatives) added.  I use the Creamy variety, which has added sugar and tocopherols; I have had no such issues with my baked goods tuning green.  

So the Sunbutter is the "Sunny" part of this equation, and the "Honey" part is just that; I swapped out the sugar for honey.

Blueberry Chai Banana Bread

This Blueberry-Chai Banana bread is a keeper!!  It's also a good way for me to highlight some of my spices, and the overripe bananas in my kitchen.

Cooking for a person with food allergies - especially foods from other countries - means that you are going to have to stock an array of spices and condiments.  If you want Chinese, Thai, or Indian foods you can't simply call for take out, or eat out....these types of food usually utilize peanut oil for it's high smoking ability, or flavor.  For making Chinese, and Thai food, it's handy to have sesame oil, rice vinegar, fish sauce, oyster sauce, hoisin sauce, various soy sauces, and Chinese 5-spice...just to name a few.  For Indian food, dried chilies, black & green cardamom (which you must husk and grind), fennel seeds, fenugreek seeds, turmeric, again - just to name a few, are essential.

DIY Del's Lemonade (Frozen Soft-Serve Lemonade)

When life gives you a 4 pound bag of lemons, you make your own  Del's Lemonade!!

What's a Del's Lemonade, you ask?  Why, it is a soft-serve, frozen lemonade famous in Rhode Island.  It's like drinking snowy lemonade (which is exactly how it was created), but NEVER with a straw - you shake it and roll it around the cup, the heat from your hand slowly melting it into the perfect drinking texture.  And weather you buy it from a Del's Lemonade stand, truck, or cart - a pretzel rod or gumball stuck atop is the perfect garnish, regardless of age.

So I don't have any pretzels or gumballs....and I don't have any of the iconic green, waxy cups that it's dispensed in...but I do have the sweet, tart, and frozen concoction that has all southern New Englanders swooning!!

Star Wars Pizzas, #MayTheFourth

MayTheForth be with you... In honor of Star Wars Day, I decided to try my hand at making Star Wars themed pizzas.  I first found these on Pinterest and have traced them back to Ramahughes' Flickr page.  Admittedly, I am no artist....especially using produce as my medium....I did my best.

I had fun making these...combining pizza & Star Wars seemed like a no-brainer!  I kept speaking Yoda - out loud, to myself (not weird)- " Yoda, on my pizza, your face is!"  And lets not forget Lord Vader....gggoooooooo (said whispering, while inhaling), gggaaaaahhhhh (said whispering, while exhaling) - again, it's only weird if you let it be weird.