ramblings from an arkansas farm girl
This is seriously the best ever homemade granola. Once you realize how easy it is to make, you’ll never again buy granola from the grocery store. (Sorry, grocery stores.) If you aren’t a granola-eating person, you might want to give it another try. This homemade granola is not only yummy, addictive, and filled with healthy ingredients, but the recipe is adaptable.Continue Reading
In my constant quest to add fiber to my diet, I made oatmeal blueberry bars this week. I followed this recipe from Eat Yourself Skinny (what a fun name!), making a few substitutions for things I didn’t have and was too lazy to go buy.
We were completely out of milk. Sort of a requirement for baking, right? Of course, I could have walked down to the Co-op for more milk, but by the time I realized it, I had already mixed half the ingredients together. (See? I didn’t follow my own advice of assembling all the ingredients before starting.)
Oopsie.
Sometimes we have to be flexible and willing to experiment.
I love cantaloupe.
My best advice for buying sweet cantaloupe is to buy in-season. In East Dallas, that means June – August. Toward the end of August, it can often be found on sale.
Here are a few tips on picking a sweet, dripping-down-your-chin melon.
See: Inspect the outside. The skin should be tan-colored and free of dents and bruises.
Feel: The melon should feel solid and heavy with no soft spots. Heaviness means ripeness.
Smell: Sniff the bottom spot where the stem was once attached. It should smell like cantaloupe. Unripe cantaloupes have no smell.
Taste: Some grocery stores and farmer’s markets offer samples (especially on the weekend). If so, don’t pass up a free taste test.
Cantaloupe has amazing health benefits including antioxidant and anti-inflammatory support. One cup provides 100% of the daily recommended allowance of Vitamin A.
The following is a great summer salad, similar to everyone’s favorite Caprese Salad.
Cantaloupe Salad
1 medium cantaloupe cut into small cubes
10-12 basil leaves, chiffonaded
1 cup fresh mozzarella cut into small pieces
1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
olive oil
red wine vinegar
juice from one lime
sea salt
pepper
Toss cantaloupe, basil, cheese and onion in a bowl. Drizzle vinegar, a long pour of olive oil, and lime juice over fruit. Stir. Sprinkle with sea salt and pepper to taste. Let stand in refrigerator thirty minutes before serving. Serves 4-6.
talya
Grace Grits and Gardening
