For some reason I am into the holiday spirit a little early this year. It’s not even Halloween and I’m already going crazy in my kitchen with colorful fall-inspired recipes. And one recipe that’s been calling my name a lot lately is my delicious spiced pumpkin cookies with maple frosting. I hadn’t made these in a looong time (at least 2 years) and well I was more than overdue. It coincided with my decision to add something compact to my usual holiday pie fare Easy Sweet Potato Super Food Tart. It’s especially important for me to have super delicious healthy treats around this time of year with so much temptation in […]
Black Forest Cherry On Top Yogurt Parfait
I first visited the Black Forest or Schwarz Wald in Germany when I was a freshman in Junior High School. That was a long time ago. However to this day, I recall every magical moment I spent in that mysterious place. It was the setting for many a children’s story and many a folklore. And it was most likely the origin of one of the world’s most beloved and exotic desserts, Black Forest Cake. What makes the cake so über special? The combination of cherries, chocolate and cream. It was a union of flavors destined to be legendary. And it was destined to grace this colorful yogurt parfait. The Black Forest […]
Almond Mocha
Almond Mocha, interestingly, is an American spin-off of a latte with added chocolate and almond flavors. Combining all three of these immortal flavors in one drink was brilliant. It was one of those rare times to me when more was better. Coffee, almond, chocolate…….three of the best flavors in the decadent drink world. To me, it’s right up there with fruit and chocolate Dreams of Cacao. I wanted an Almond Mocha so bad one day that I decided to create one myself using only whole natural ingredients. I used to purchase them ready-made but only once in a while because they contained refined sugar and artificial flavorings, not a good thing when you’re watching […]
Seasoned Cauliflower and Broccoli Soup with Jasmine
“I live on good soup, not on fine words.” Moliere These words mirror my own feelings about soup; give me a good book and I’m content, give me a good bowl of soup and I’m happy. And with fall fast approaching, I’m ready to dust off my special cool weather soup recipes and ladle, and get busy making some body and soul-nurturing soups so welcome this time of year. I’ve lived in several climates in the last 10 years and it never ceases to amaze me how appealing soup is in all of them. Maybe it’s because soups have been around so long (the first real soup may date back […]
Iced Minty Matcha Green Tea Latte
I’ve always loved green tea lattes and made a point of ordering one whenever they were in sight. It didn’t take me long to realize though that while commercial green tea lattes were convenient they were definitely leaving me agitated and ultimately fatigued. There needed to be a better way to enjoy this exotic drink without compromising the flavor or authenticity and my health. Fresh homemade green tea latte. Just the idea alone made me crave it. Maybe I’d even go father and add in matcha tea. A double dose of a very good thing. As you may already know, commercial green tea lattes often use ingredients that us erstwhile […]