Daily Eats #03

This week's Daily Eats is a round up of sauces, syrups, frosting and dips.

Breakfast: Buttermilk Syrup from my cousin Jarica
I'm excited to share this recipe with you because its a family recipe and we've been making it for years at all our waffle parties. This syrup is so delicious and easy. I'm convinved that even if I poured it over cardboard and ate it would be delightful.

Buttermilk Syrup
1 square butter
1/2 c. buttermilk
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. white sugar
combine all ingredients and bring to a boil.
Take off heat and add:
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda-this will make it foam and expand
*store in the fridge when not using

Lunch: "The best hummus you'll ever have" featured on A Cup of Joe, by Sprouted Kitchen
I was excited to make this because I had bought tahini for another recipe and I needed to use it up. We halfed this recipe and it still had plenty for the two of us. We accidentally doubled the red chilli flakes and caught it just in time to scrape some out but the hummus did have a nice "kick" to it, so I'm not sure if that is normal or because of our mistake. I love the use of lemon and herbs in this recipe. I did substitute dry dill for fresh dill because I couldn't find any fresh dill and I reduced it by more than half so it wouldn't be too overpowering.

Dinner: Great Grandma's Pasta Sauce by Table for Two
I'll admit I haven't made this recipe yet but it looks tasty! Right now the way we do spaghetti sauce is 1 jar of pasta sauce, throw in some spices and frozen meatballs and let it simmer in the crock pot all day. I'm wondering if I could get the best of both worlds and mix the two recipes!

Dessert:  Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting by Not So Humble Pie
This frosting has so many things going for it. It has a great consistency for cakes, cupcakes, cookies and melts perfectly on warm cinnamon rolls. Its not overly sweet and has a great cream cheese taste. I've made this frosting many of times and its definitely on my "keeper" list.

daily eats #02

I started a new series last fall called daily eats and never really took off with it but its something that I'm still excited about so I'm rolling with it.

For a recap, Daily Eats is a days worth of meals all in one post! It will include recipes that I've tried and wanted to try and some tips and pointers along the way.

For this round up I found some real gems.

Breakfast: Whole Wheat Waffles by The Faux Martha
I enjoyed the recipe because they aren't overly sweet which means you can put things that ARE overly sweet on top, like buttermilk syrup, for a perfect balance. Also they have a bit of orange juice in them which adds a nice zip.

Lunch: Glazed Beet + Carrot Salad by Sprouted Kitchen
I'm not a salad girl but I thought this recipe was divine. The sauteed veggies on top takes away the yucky salad feeling that I usually get yet it still leaves the feeling of eating healthy and fresh vegetables. The recipe calls for yellow beets, which are kind of expensive so next time I would substitute for red beets. Also my dressing seperated on the stove but on the salad you couldn't tell the difference. I would make this again but plan it for a dinner party or a special occasion rather than a weeknight meal/lunch just because the presentation alone is THAT awesome.

Dinner: Pan Seared Salmon with Avocado Remoulade from Simply Recipes
We've been on a salmon kick over here and I think the reason why salmon works so well for us is because we cook it on the grill. And when I say we I mean my husband. Seriously my man has some of the best grill skills I've ever seen. That being said, we didn't pan sear this salmon but my husband did sear it on the grill... which means crispy on the outside and tender and flaky on the inside. He also cooked it with lemon and butter (the most perfect pair in my book). The avocado remoulade was good but made WAY to much for the two of us. It would make a nice guacamole as leftovers though. But next time I would cut that part in half.

Dessert: Baked Lime Pudding Cake by Tyler Florence
These little cakes are delightful. They are tart and pair nicely with some homemade whipped cream. They do take an hour to bake and aren't "cake mix" easy but they are worth it in my book. I've already made them three times!

Daily Eats #01 Recap

 I just wanted to give a quick recap on the recipes that I posted for the first Daily Eats. I managed to make two of the four recipes...not too bad eh? I made the granola but realized while making it that I had quick oats instead of the whole rolled oats so it turned out soft instead of crunchy. I also made this RIGHT before/during my teeth problems so I really didn't end up eating more than a couple nibbles. SO in all fairness I think I will have to try this one again. And I do recommend it! It's peanut butter and honey after all.

 As for the WINNER...... The black bean veggie tacos! We actually made them again last night. I cheated and used canned black beans because I didn't plan ahead but they still turned out great. We also added a little bit of red cabbage to ours as well, which was a nice crunch. The first time we made it I didn't have any paprika and after making it with the paprika last night I have to say I think I liked it better without! Overall a great vegetarian dish that doesn't leave you hungry or thinking, where is the meat?! Even Alden said so. And you know how those men love their meat. Stay tuned for Daily Eats #02!

Daily Eats #01

Its been a long month since I've posted! And in that time I traveled to 4 states, attended girls camp for a week, went white water rafting, cliff jumping, swimming in lakes, and everything in between. I'll be posting pictures of some of our adventures this week, you can also follow me on instagram (@ashleyaikele) if you want to spoil the surprise, or just take a gander at my daily happenings.

Meanwhile.... I've been in a cooking mood so I've decided to start a new series on the blog called Daily Eats- a days worth of meals all in one post! I will gather recipes from around the web and post them here... and HOPEFULLY it will motivate me to do MORE good ol fashion home cooking. (The Wendy's diet has to go!). Then as I try the recipes (and hopefully you will too) I can give tips and comments on what I liked/what I would change etc.

Here are some recipes that have caught my eye as of late.

Breakfast: Peanut Butter + Honey Granola by Eat Sleep Cuddle
Lunch: Black Bean Veggie Tacos by Eat Sleep Cuddle
Dinner: Zucchini Rice Gratin by Smitten Kitchen
Dessert: Sour Cream Peach Ice-Cream by Cafe Johnsonia