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Spice Advice.

Desserts

Pizza Braid. A pizza braid is very kid-friendly, easy on the wallet and extremely simple to make.

Pizza Braid

My aunt and cousin first introduced me to them and I’ve been hooked ever since. The possibilities are endless of the varieties you could make (check out the Apple Dessert Braid!) , but the recipe below is for a very basic hamburger and pepperoni braid. You could make your own dough, but I prefer the shortcut of using Rhodes rise and bake dough. This is one of my favorite shortcuts to make a nice loaf of bread or use in recipes like this one. As I said, this is extremely basic. The dough takes a few hours to rise, so I take it out in the morning and place a towel over it. Yes, yes the dough in that photo has not risen fully. Then you spread out the sauce, lay the meats down, followed by the cheese. Then with a pizza cutter, start cutting about 1 inch thick strips down the whole rectangle.

French Fries: The No-Guilt Version. There’s nothing like a french fried potato.

French Fries: The No-Guilt Version

The taste, the texture, the dip-ability; it’s probably one of my favorite go-to comfort foods. However, I don’t need the fat of an actual deep fried potato, and I certainly do not favor processed french fries that come from the frozen food section of the grocery store. Enter: Healthy French Fries* Step 1: Peel your ‘taters. This isn’t necessary, though, but if you decide you want the skin on make sure you scrub-wash them first. Step 2: Cut them into strips. Step 3: Place potatoes in colander and rinse the starch off of them. Step 4: Pat down the potatoes.

Step 5: Drizzle Olive Oil over potatoes. Step 6: Salt those babies up. Step 7: Mix them up so they all get coated with the olive oil and salt. Step 8: Arrange them, on a baking sheet, in a single layer Step 9: Add anything else you like. Step 10: Place the potatoes into your preheated oven for 20 minutes. Step 11: Flip and continue to bake for 5-10 minutes.

And then, voila… Healthy French Fries Enjoy! Ziploc Omelette. Italian Grilled Cheese. Who doesn’t love a good grilled cheese?

Italian Grilled Cheese

And, I know it’s totally Ameeeerican to make the classic: American cheese, mayonnaise and bread. But, why not change it a bit and use REALLY fresh and natural ingredients?!?!? Love it! There’s nothing more delicious than fresh and homemade ingredients. Yum!!! Soooo, go to your farmers market and get the freshest tomatoes and basil you can find, grab some mozzarella balls, and assemble this amazing meal. Basil & Oregano Pesto Ingredients 1 cup fresh basil leaves1/4 cup fresh oregano leaves (or just more basil leaves)1 garlic clove1/4 cup of walnuts1/8 teaspoon salt1/4 teaspoon pepper2-3 tablespoons olive oil How-To Put all of the ingredients in a food processor, blend and set aside. Basil & oregano pestoMozzarella cheese, slicedTomato, slice. Put your griddle (or panini press) on medium heat.Spray with cooking spray.Assemble your sandwiches.Cook until lightly browned and the cheese has melted.Cut in half and serve right away.

Servings: 3 sandwiches. The Ultimate Strawberry Lemonade. One of the first times I ever realized that – HEY!

The Ultimate Strawberry Lemonade

I can cook for myself! – was when I first learned to make lemonade. I magically found the refrigerated lemon juice at our house and followed the directions to make my own lemonade. I stirred and stirred and stirred again until that sugar was finally dissolved. Speaking of which, what gives sugar?! Sorry for the detour. Anyway, there was a summer there where I made my own lemonade every single day, making sure to rub it in my sister’s face that I knew how to and she didn’t. The key to this being the ultimate lemonade is that you blend it up with the lemon rind in there.

And any time of day for that matter. (makes 2 pint-glass servings with ice) 3/4 cup sugar2 large lemons, microwaved for 30 seconds2 cups water1 cup of frozen strawberries, microwaved for 1 minute (you could use fresh, but I think the frozen works better here) Easy Parmesan Knots.