Peppermint Power!

 If you are interested in cutting down on even more calories,
substitute the milk with soy milk.
Also, for a thicker custard add extra egg yolks.

 Try breaking the peppermint down into small pieces
or else they will sink to the bottom of your mix.

 For quick churning, we always keep
our kitchen aid ice cream attachments in the freezer.

Dig in!

Peppermint Ice Cream from Cooking Light

Notes:
Since peppermint candies are hard candies
  and can be somewhat abrasive on the teeth,
I recommend breaking the peppermint down into very small pieces;
especially if you have sensitive teeth,
.

Pi-zza Not Pi-sa

 We used a variety of ingredients
in order to give our pizzas a depth of flavor.

Want a different spin on your pizza dough?
Try different kinds of flours and seasonings in your pizza dough.

 We made three different kinds of doughs:
white, wheat and a mix of both.

We used generic pizza sauce on these pizzas

but if you want to make your own try
Alton Brown's Pantry Friendly Tomato Sauce Recipe

 Voila: Cheesy meaty pizza!

Alton Brown's Pizza Pizzas

Notes:

If you like a less salty pizza crust make sure to cut some of the salt.
For extra flavor add some Italian seasoning or garlic.
The cold proofing really works to develop the flavors.
Lastly, using a pizza stone (or the bottom of the terracota pot)
browns the dough, giving it an excellent texture and flavor.

Herb the Chicken

Herb Crusted Chicken and Parsley Orzo from Cooking Light

Notes:
If you have thick pieces of of chicken,
cut them in half to ensure that they cook all the way through.
For extra flavor add Italian Seasonings

instead of parsley. 

Orange-me Pork

Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Orange
and Red Onion Salsa from Cooking Light

Notes:
The key to this dish was
definitely picking out perfect, sweet oranges.
The oranges added a flavorful, fresh tanginess to the overall dish
which really kicked our taste buds to a happy place.
As for a side, we decided to pair this entrée with a side of couscous
but it could also go well with rice or a mixed green salad.

Cinco de Drinco!

Of course every Cinco de Mayo involves a couple of these.
Inspired by The Coastal Margarita from Coastal Living
(Throw some fresh strawberries in the mix for
sweet, fresh strawberry margaritas).

No Cinco de Mayo celebration is complete without tacos!
Carne Asada Taco with Avocado Pico de Gallo


A little breakdown:

The meat calls for a 3 hour marination period-
but if you are short for time
adding some lime zest to the marinade really adds flavor
and cuts down at least an hour.
(Or add it if you just love lime).

This pico de gallo is super flavorful and a must for avocado lovers.
Make sure to buy avocados a day or two before.
If they are still firm, throw them in a paper bag
and put them on top of the fridge.
This will really help get them to where they need to be.


Happy Cinco de Mayo!!