Are we really what we eat? Well, not only. We are what we say. What we do. The things we don’t do … and I’ve been exploring ways to shift my mindset outside of food. Do you think of your overall health as more than what you eat, or do you find yourself constantly hung up on the next meal or bite?
Read MoreBack in 2016 I went on a solo trip to Italy and it forever changed the way I not only looked at life, sex, being naked and truly living. It changed the way I saw … PASTA! I grew up in a home of pasta. Pasta Sunday, pasta with peas, pasta with beans, pasta with broccoli, pasta with cauliflower, pasta with zucchini, pasta with insert any and every seasonal vegetable. As a family we ate pasta, not daily but at least twice weekly, and
Read MoreSummer is coming to a close and after a trip to the market, where I spied an abundance of corn, I knew I had to make a flavor packed grain salad before the time was up. For me, NJ and LI corn are a weakness, unlike their men. I kid, I kid - and that's a whole different newsletter! Pairing corn with farro, fresh veggies, cilantro, scallions, zesty lime and smoked paprika makes for a Mediterranean meets southwestern flavor profile.
Read MoreI love eggs. I love my eggs scrambled, sunny side up and poached. Sure, I also love a fluffy filled to the max mega frittata and the popular omelette but, of late, my only true love is the open faced omelette. The open faced omelette, AKA the pizza omelette - made with a thin layer of egg and then piled high with ingredients such as veggies, meats and/or cheese
Read MoreWeeknights leave little room for making any sort of gourmet dinner, you and I both know that. But dinner also doesn’t have to be gourmet or recipe based. With work, busy schedules, the compounded effects of technology and the need to be “always on,” it’s getting harder and harder to find a work life balance … let alone get in the kitchen.
Read MoreHave you ever had one of those mornings where you step on the scale just to see? To ballpark where you are, how you’re feeling and what’s going on in the numbers world? And then it easily becomes … The. Worst. Idea. Ever.
Do you ever judge yourself and your worth by your weight? By a number? Just back from a lovely 8 days with my parents where I walked, biked, beached, bikini’d, even managed to make out, eat a fair amount of pastry and LOVED every moment …
Tired of salad? Same old same old lettuce with tomatoes and cucumbers … Are you ready to stop hating and start recreating what a salad can be?! Add a blast sweet to your snore worthy lunch salad and dare to taste what happens! My job is to share what I know and what I know is that when sweet pairs with acid, salt and herbs … THE. MOUTH. GOES. WILD
Read MoreWhile I have not been procuring produce with passion or cooking with a burning desire to change the 10 minute meal world, I have been treating myself well and giving myself license to step out of the kitchen, head to the beach, dine out and enjoy the company of friends instead of continually cooking for one. I’ve been working hard to build a positive relationship with food outside of my home, to notice my choices and how they make me feel.
Read MorePeeling fava beans was a favorite childhood summertime cooking chore. Way better than mom asking me to get a new roll of paper towels or sending me to the corner store for bread. Splitting open a fava pod and peeling off the beans thick skin is a labor of mealtime love - it takes time, patience and must be done gingerly so as not to break apart your beans.
Read MoreFor the last few days I’ve found myself feeling disconnected. Not as engaged in my own life, perhaps a touch sad and weighed down by myself and my thoughts. Having just written about the ways I try to maintain my “home” I’m totally struggling this week and I believe this is what we call being human. I don’t bake to eat, usually. I bake to get out emotion.
Read MoreInspired by an epic Friday night meal of branzino, eggplant, zucchini, salad and wine I planned to relive it at home. A kingdom for grilled branzino every day, deboning and picking pins like a professional - but it gets costly … sometimes a lady has to get her wild flounder on because the price is right at the fish market.
Read MoreHome is where the heart is? Right? I mean, the phrase was coined with reason yet when I deconstruct the phrase itself (because I pick apart words like I would pick my childhood scraped knee scars), I think about how truly layered it is. What does home mean to you?
For me, home is a place I work to make beautiful everyday.
Making salsa is simple. It requires little prep, minimal tools and ingredients that are easy to come by in your grocery store. A certified crowd pleaser, great for vegetarians, vegans and even your meaty buddies (scoop this fruit salsa on a burger, shrimp or salmon) and delight everyone around your table.
Read MoreWhile everyone else is eating warm potato and macaroni salad (gulp) this July 4th, perhaps you can choose to make a side that can double as a salad or a salsa. With interchangeable ways to use these two salsa/sides, you’re guaranteed to please guests and yourself with nutrition, hydration and leftovers.
Read MoreAs a champion for grocery shopping, real food, cooking and caring for my home (mind, body, the actual space I live in) - when the weather gets beautiful and the weekend rolls around … The last thing I want to do is roll my food suitcase from store to store. Sure, I love Astoria, long walks, exploring, and saying hi to my local produce people … but …
Read MoreIt was with an open heart that I attended the District 30 Health Fair on Saturday May 4th.
There’s no better feeling in the world than giving to others, freely and happily. The turn out for the event was spectacular and I couldn’t have pulled it off without the help of my friends.
Read MoreI consider myself quite fortunate that I grew up in a home where cooking was a second language served up alongside Neapolitan dialect. I only ever learned the curses and catch phrases of my culture, while every part of my being took to the language of food.
Cooking can seem daunting some days, even to someone who loves it. Trust me. After a day of substitute teaching, then coming home to write, coach, teach health workshops and build a business I often come home hungry and semi-exhausted from the day.
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