THE BEST OF THE BAKED EGG...

Baked Chilaquiles w/ Black Beans & Kale

Eggs. I absolutely love them. I could and do often eat them for breakfast, lunch, and/or dinner. I like them scrambled, boiled, fried, and poached. I like them with or without cheese and simply seasoned with Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Sometimes I sprinkle them with whatever type of fresh herb I have in the fridge. Like I said- I love them. But until recently, I've never really baked them. I don't know why, but I now know I've been missing out! Baked eggs often create a one pot meal (gotta love a one pot meal!) that is comforting, creamy, and fitting for any meal. I recently made this baked egg dish (the one you see directly below) for dinner one night and fell in love! It was easy to make, looked amazing, and tasted even better!  I'm now on the hunt for more recipes and here are a few I found... Are you a baked egg lover??

Farm Eggs with Braised Greens & Tomatoes

Sweet Potato & Onion Hash with Baked Eggs

Mushroom-Spinach Baked Eggs

Baked Eggs with Spinach & Cream

THE BEST OF: UNIQUE TACOS...

{Happy Tacos w/ Avocado Sauce}

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Mexican food, so naturally I love to celebrate Cinco de Mayo. I don't always have the patience to wait hours at a crowded restaurant for taco and margarita, so I often celebrate at home. Boring I know. But that's me. Anyway, if I just happen to not have the patience for a restaurant this year, the plan is to make a homemade Mexican meal - with a twist. I am perfectly happy eating the normal chicken or veggie taco with cheese, spicy salsa, guacamole and a touch of sour cream with chips and more spicy salsa on the side, but this year I want to try something different. So I sought out some unique taco recipes to consider and these are a few of my favorite finds. All of these are semi-healthy, very different and full of color, which I love. Do you see anything here you might try? What are your plans for Cinco de Mayo??

{Chipotle Quinoa Sweet Potato Tacos w/ Roasted Cranberry Pomegranate Salsa}

{Thai Chicken Tacos}

{Fried Avocado Tacos}

{Spiced Black Bean , Grilled Avocado, and Goat Cheese Tacos}

THE BEST OF: HOLIDAY COCKTAILS

Sage Ginger Proscecco

So for the past few years, I have made and photographed a favorite holiday cocktail (here and here). This year time just didn't permit. But know that I'll still be making some sort of concoction for Christmas and New Years! On most days, I perfer white wine. But cocktails around the holidays are just a necessity to me. They are just a little more special and personable than the standard beer or wine. So if you feel the same way and are looking for something special for that party, family dinner or holiday evening on the couch, these cocktails by some talented virtual bartenders might do the trick... 

Boulevardier Cocktail

Cranberry Thyme Gin Tonic

French 75

Brandy Alexander

P.S. More of the "Best Of" series here...

THE BEST OF: HOMEMADE ICE CREAM

{Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirl Fudge Brownie Ice Cream}

So it's summer and summer is obviously synonymous with ice cream. I love it, a lot - so much so that I bought my own ice cream maker. I bought it when I made this 4-ingredient ice cream last year. Since then, I have preferred to make homemade ice cream when time permits. It's easy to make and I know exactly what's in it. For whatever reason, it often tastes better. I love to make it, put 2 or 3 scoops in a bowl, top it with my homemade chocolate sauce (2 TB semisweet chocolate chips with a splash of almond milk melted in the microwave for 30 seconds) and curl up on the couch. So I couldn't let the summer go by without rounding up a few ice cream recipes that are not only beauties to the eye, but pleasing to the tummy... Do you make your own ice cream?? If you do, please share your favorite recipe! I'd love to hear!

{Frangelico Coffee No-Churn Ice Cream}

{Coffee Hazelnut Ice Cream}

{Blackberry Ice Cream}

{Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream}

P.S. Another "Best Of" - Veggie Burgers

7 Pounds Down + Veggie Burgers

Summer is right around the corner, so burgers are on my brain. This year, healthy burgers are on my brain. I haven't said as much, but I have lost about 7 pounds since January. It was completely unplanned. Each January, I always cut back after eating double my weight in fabulous food during the holidays. So I did that this year. Then in March, I purchased a Vitamix. I starting drinking a fresh organic spinach, berry and almond milk smoothie for breakfast every day (and still do). It fills me up and gives me so much energy! Starting my day off with something so healthy made me feel guilty about ruining it with something bad later in the day, so I made more of an effort to eat healthy all day. That's when the pounds came off.  I still have a day during the week where I eat absolutely whatever I want, but I have to say that I feel so much better! 

So with that, I've started to look for healthy recipes for the summer. I'm not a vegan or vegetarian, but I do love a good veggie burger. I often find that if the burger is perfectly seasoned, I totally don't miss the beef. These are a few that have made their way into my recipe folder. If you are looking for a healthier option for this upcoming Memorial Day, these might be some good options...

Beet Burgers w/ Coleslaw (Vegetarian) | BBQ Lentil Veggie Burger w/ Mango Carrot Slaw (Vegan) | Crispy Quinoa Sliders (Vegetarian) | Smoky Sweet Potato Burgers w/ Roasted Garlic Cream & Avocado (Vegetarian) | Sweet Potato & Black Bean Veggie Burgers (Vegetarian)