The First Salad of the Season

By Lori Powell

The fresh air of spring has arrived and with it are thoughts of bathing suits, the ocean, vacations, spring cleaning and fresh produce. With the advent of fresh produce comes inspiration for lovely salads for dinner and for lunch, hopefully resulting in a couple of pounds and inches off my frame.

My first salad of the season is a pickled shrimp and red onion concoction with cucumber. You make a simple pickling liquid which uses seasoned rice vinegar, agave, star anise and a pinch of heat from red pepper flakes. The star anise is optional but adds nice dimension to the pickling liquid.

Star anise can be found in the spice section of the supermarket. This spice is shaped like a star about one inch in diameter and has eight dark-brown spokes. It is grown in China and Japan, similar to licorice and anise, and is one of the spices in five-spice powder.

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Deviled Eggs for Breakfast

By Marilyn Hunter

Nicky has always loved hard-boiled eggs or “boilers” as we call them in our house. His favorite part is the bright yellow yolk, while Benny eats all the white and leaves the “yellow” for his brother. In a never-ending quest to sleep just a little later in the morning, I decided to start deviling boilers at night, so breakfast is now both a novelty and a snap.

Sometimes well-laid plans come together…deviled eggs are the boys’ new favorite breakfast. Two deviled eggs (one whole egg) are plenty for each kid, along with their regular serving of fruit and ice water.

This method for hard-boiling the eggs belongs to Andrew. He’s done it this way for years and swears that 12 minutes will yield a runny yolk and 14 minutes will create the unwanted gray line around the yolk. He swears that 13 minutes is pure perfection. Being married to a chef makes for odd kitchen debates.

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Sweets in One or Two Bites

By Lori Powell

During the week, I mostly focus on the savory foods such as what to have for the day’s three meals: breakfast lunch and dinner. I am lucky enough not to have a severe sweet tooth but do on occasion crave a sweet bite of something which is usually satisfied by fruit or a bite of chocolate.

I love to bake but living alone, that can be a dangerous thing to have baked goods sitting around, like leftover chocolate cake, cookies, pies or tarts. If I had any of that hanging around, I might develop a sweet hankering.

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The Other Yogurt

By Katie Barreira

When Greek yogurt arrived in supermarkets, it was a revelation. With a texture closer to crème fraîche, the thick, creamy yogurt was immediately embraced as a substitute for mayonnaise in dips, ice cream atop pie, and sour cream on chili.

Now, it seems, Greek yogurt has flooded the market. And while I wouldn’t want to live in a world without this super-rich, highly strained yogurt, I worry for the forsaken plain yogurt. With its pourable consistency, refreshing tang and light mouth feel, regular old yogurt is still my favorite. I use it in my morning cereal instead of milk, for a filling breakfast that’s packed with probiotics.

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Simple 30-minute Fish Sticks

By David Hu

While it’s easy to buy frozen fish sticks, it really doesn’t take much to make them yourself – just 6 ingredients and about 25 minutes from start to finish. This recipe uses U.S. Farm-Raised Catfish which is a lean fish and an excellent source of protein. And The National Audubon Society, Monterey Bay Aquarium, and Environmental Defense all recommend U.S. Farm-Raised Catfish as a safe environmental choice.

I like to eat these fish sticks either on their own or in a sandwich. To make a sandwich, use a nice crusty baguette, add lettuce and tomato, and use the Asian-inspired tartar sauce recipe for a punch of flavor.

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